The Other Side
by Maudlin Mush
Summary: Dr. Brackett experiences first hand the loss of home and hearth.
1. Chapter 1

The Other Side

by Maudlin Mush

Disclaimer: The characters of Emergency do not belong to me. House fires are difficult; more so when it's your home! As always I'll help 'em up, dust them off, give 'em a smooch and send them back when I'm done.

note: the story I reference below, regarding Johnny losing his home to a fire, is a story called "Displaced" by dee_ayy and can be found at:

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Johnny Gage lifted his arm off his eyes and blearily glared at the telephone next to his bed. He'd pulled an extra shift over at the 36's for an injured Brice. It'd been a hellacious shift with no sleep due to a mva involving two big rigs and several passenger vehicles on the 710 south just after midnight.

The glare didn't work; the phone continued to ring. He reached for the handset.

"Yeah?" he grumbled.

"Johnny? This is Dwyer," the voice of the B-shift paramedic came over the phone. Cranky, Gage pushed up on his pillow.

"Yeah. You ok?" he asked.

"Fine, fine," Dwyer said. "From the blotters you were out all night."

"Yeah, mva," Gage agreed. "Really bad one."

"Uhm, I don't want you to cover a shift," the reluctant paramedic stated. "But we need your help." John shifted in the sheets and pushed himself to the edge of the bed. He swung his feet over the side and sat up trying to convince his eyes to stay open.

"Yeah? How can I help?" he rumbled.

"There was a really bad fire by you," Dwyer began. "Uh, it was the apartment/condos over on fifth? Anyway, they're totaled."

"On fifth?" Johnny tried to figure why he was needed. "You guys got it out, right?"

"Johnny, Dr. Brackett lived there," the paramedic faltered a moment. Gage sat straight up.

"Is Dr. Brackett ok?" he asked quickly.

"He's physically ok," Dwyer said. "But his condo was a total. Nothing left. He's, he's kinda lost..."

"Where's he at?" Gage asked.

"Uh, he's here, at Rampart with us," Dwyer said. "Problem is, Dixie is out of town for the rest of the week..."

"And Dr. Early is at a conference back east," Johnny finished.

"Doc Morton thought you'd maybe take him in for now," Dwyer finished. Johnny rubbed his eyes.

"Sure, but I really am tired. I can't pick him up," he said. "No way I can drive."

"We'll drop him off," Dwyer hesitated. "Uh, you, uh, lost your stuff a couple years back..." Johnny unsuccessfully stifled a yawn.

"Yeah, my apartment building was totaled," he confirmed. "A real mess. There was nothing left."

"Doc's condo building's the same," the paramedic said quietly. "Just the shell left." Silence. "We'll be there in about 15 minutes."

" 'k. I'll leave the door unlocked in case I fall asleep," he said.

Getting up Johnny tried to think. He walked across the hall to the "guest room". Jenny Bean and Chris used it often enough but it was not ready for anyone. Just making the bed was too much to consider. He proceeded down the hall to unlock the door and decided the couch wasn't gonna cut it either.

Returning to his room he eyed the king-size bed he'd bought on a whim. He'd read all about different kinds of mattresses. Drove Roy nearly insane with his single-minded endeavor to get the "right" one for himself. He smiled recalling Jenny and Chris helping him try out various beds at different stores. He'd let them choose the bed for the guest room. After looking at prices he'd elected to go with the larger bed for himself.

A knock at his door snapped him back to the present. He quickly pulled on some sweat pants and headed down the hall once more.

"Hey, Johnny," Dwyer said with an apologetic smile. He was pulling along a very shell-shocked doctor. The man was dressed in hospital scrubs looking freshly washed. Probably was compelled to take a shower at the hospital. Pale face. Downcast eyes.

"Hi Doc," he said softly and moved forward to take hold of his elbow. No response.

"Dr. Morton gave him some diazepam before we left," Dwyer explained. "And he sent these for later," he held out a small envelope with additional medication. The label explained the dosage. "Here's the keys he'd brought in with him."

"How much sleep did he get?" Gage asked as he accepted keys and meds.

"Uhm, fire was reported just after 3 am," Dwyer replied, "so a couple hours I'd assume." Johnny pulled Kel inside.

"Thanks for dropping him off," he said. "I'll take it from here. Could you let your cap know I need the next shift off? I'll call Stanley later, but maybe you could arrange a sub." Dwyer nodded.

"No problem," he said. "I'll call Dr. Morton and see about getting Dr. Brackett's shifts covered for the next couple of days as well. He'll definitely need time, too. See you later. Sleep well, Doc."

Closing the door Johnny took stock of his new roommate. Brackett was definitely in shock. The valium had contributed to his exhaustion. With a sigh he tugged the man down the hall. He knew exactly how he felt.

He pushed the unresistant man into bed pulling the covers over him. Then he sat down next to him.

"Ya need to sleep, Kel," he said as he smoothed his hair back. "Once you've slept we can figure it all out." He actually received a nod as the exhausted man closed his eyes.

Standing, he moved around to the other side of the bed and crawled in; he was just as tired as his friend and was quickly asleep.

Several hours later Johnny woke feeling much better. He looked over at Brackett and realized it hadn't been a dream. Kel was still out, probably drugged to the gills and exhausted. He remembered the early morning call and the delivery of the overwhelmed man.

Well, first things first. He quickly dressed and then laid out clean clothing: sweats, t-shirt and socks. He added a fairly new pair of moccasin-type slip ons that should fit. Then he went into the kitchen and made coffee.

Next he phoned the dry cleaners. He used the same one that Brackett did. In fact, Kel had suggested them when he'd bought the small house after his own devastating fire. Nestled in a middle-class neighborhood with a nice yard and trees he'd happily settled down.

The cleaners confirmed that Mr. Brackett had clean clothes waiting for pick up. Nearly fifty bucks worth. Johnny realized that this included underwear and casual clothing as the doctor had them launder as well as dry cleaned work clothes.

The next call was to his partner, Roy. He quickly explained Dr. Brackett's predicament and asked for some help. He didn't want to leave the man alone but he did want to get some familiar things for him.

"I have some money," Gage told his partner. "If you can would you come and get his clothing and maybe pick up some things at the store? I can make a list."

"Sure, no problem!" Roy responded. "Man, that really sucks, losing everything."

"Yeah," Johnny agreed. "I know exactly how he feels!"

"Yeah, Hey, Joanne made lasagna last night," Roy said. "She made extra for you." Johnny grinned. He loved her cooking. "I'll bring it along, there's enough for you and Doc."

"Great! It'll be perfect," Johnny said happily. Comfort food! Just the thought of it soothed him; he realized he'd been stressed by the memories of his own fire.

Brackett was still asleep when Roy stopped by, accepting both the list and some of Johnny's "mad money" he kept stashed in the house. He was impressed by his younger partner; the man had begun to list all the things that would need to be done to replace things destroyed in the fire. First up was the insurance companies for both his home and his car.

While Roy was out Johnny cleaned up the guest room, stowing the games in the cupboard and putting fresh sheets on the bed. Next he cleared out the dresser drawers and made sure the closet had plenty of space for clothing. Finally he placed a couple books on the night stand by an author he knew Kel liked. Something familiar.

Upon returning clothing was unpackaged and slipped into drawers. The plastic was pulled off the suits and hung in the closet. Johnny selected some clothing for now and swapped it out in the master bedroom. Roy stored toiletries in the hall bathroom and then made his farewell. He knew that the doctor would need to wake soon and he didn't want to be there. Too many people was worse than being alone; he'd learned that after Johnny's loss.

After Roy left Johnny returned to the bedroom and moved over to the bed and once more sat next to his friend.

"Hey, Kel?" he said softly, hand on a shoulder. "Think it's about time to wake up." He patted gently and continued to speak in a low, soothing tone. He was rewarded with a groan and then blue eyes blinking in the dim light.

"Johnny?" he muttered, "what are you doin' in my bedroom?"

"Letting you know the coffee's ready, Doc," he replied calmly. He watched as the sleepy man began processing his environment. Then the flash of shock then lost hopelessness as memories of the previous night hit hard. He quickly sat up.

"My place, it burned! All my things are gone!" he was becoming agitated. "My car, my clothing, my, my..." he dropped off as the enormity once more hit him. Gage gathered him up and held on firmly.

"I know, it's all gone," he said calmly. "And as soon as we've had some coffee and breakfast we'll start getting your life back." Kel accepted the embrace and didn't bother stifling the few tears that leaked out. When he was ready he leaned back a little.

"Roy picked up your clothes from the cleaners," Johnny explained. "We put them in the guest room. There're toiletries in the hall bathroom for you, even a new toothbrush! I set out some clothing, too." Brackett looked around and located his own things.

Normal. It made him feel normal.

With a nod he slid out of bed, gathered up his things, including the footwear, and headed down the hall. Seeing his own favored brands caused him to shed a few more tears. It seemed Johnny had paid attention when he stayed over at his place recuperating. He gratefully showered and dressed.

Clean, Kel walked down the hall into the kitchen, his nose following the smell of cinnamon and vanilla. His host was at the stove cooking. Turning, Johnny gave him an encouraging smile.

"Good morning!" he said cheerfully. "Coffee's ready and I'm plating up breakfast."

"You realize it's after 2 in the afternoon..." Kel said with a grin.

"Yep. I just figured french toast would be tasty," he replied. Pouring his coffee Brackett nudged his shoulder.

"Your french toast is legendary," he said. "I'd eat it for dinner!"

"Ah, but Joanne sent over home made lasagna for dinner," Johnny teased. This perked the doctor up even more.

"Great!" he said with a brighter smile.

"We can go out and get salad fixings and garlic bread," Gage said as his friend leaned against the counter. "I haven't shopped this week." Pulling a warmed plate from the oven he slipped french toast and scrambled eggs on the plate, three slices of bacon artfully placed over the toast. This was handed off to the Doc. A second plate was similarly treated and soon the two men were eating at the table.

The paramedic's calm bearing helped Kel a lot. He knew the younger man had already gone through the loss of a home to fire. Now that he'd slept, and was eating, he felt he might be able to get through this tragedy.

"We need to call the insurance company first," Johnny commented as he leaned back sipping coffee. "And get to the DMV to replace your license."

"I have my passport in a safe deposit box with a copy of my birth certificate," Kel said as he gathered up another drippy bite of french toast on his fork.

"Great! I wish I had been that smart," his companion said. "I had to start from scratch. Joanne was a godsend. She found out how to reestablish my identification and get credit cards replaced."

"I hadn't thought of that," Brackett admitted. "But I can speak to someone at the bank about my one credit card. Then I'll have to call Texaco to replace that card."

"Dwyer said he'd call Dr. Morton about covering your shift for a couple of days. I spoke with Cap about covering my next shift. We'll get you squared away and back on your feet."

"Shoes would be nice," Kel commented as he looked down at the slippered feet. "Although these are very comfortable."

"Too bad Dixie isn't here," Gage remarked as he moved to the coffee pot. "I bet she'd love to help you shop!" Kel ducked his head with a faint blush.

"Indeed she would," he said. "Although she wouldn't have opened her home to me." Johnny stopped pouring coffee into his mugs.

"What?" he was surprised. "I thought she'd be first in line." Now Brackett looked even more embarrassed.

"Well, we're really close," the doctor allowed, "but to be completely honest she's turned me down three times. She insists that she loves me, but she want her own space." Johnny was flabbergasted. He always figured that Brackett had never asked the feisty nurse to marry him. He did manage to finish pouring out fresh coffee and return the urn to the counter.

"I just always figured you two would eventually move in together," Johnny finally said.

"Well, Dixie is her own woman," Kel admitted. "She says she wants to be able to send me home or go to her own home when she gets tired of me," he added sourly.

"I guess she really wants her independence," Gage said carefully.

"Guess so," Brackett said as he sipped his coffee.

"You know you're welcome to stay here as long as you want," Johnny said sincerely. "Roy said my apartment was the pits but he likes it here when he's hiding out from his mother in law." Kel looked up at the younger man.

"I haven't even thought about where I'll stay," he began. Gage jumped right back with his own guilt.

"Yeah, I guess I am not the best choice," he said softly.

"John Gage, that is not what I meant!" Brackett said quickly. "You have to realize I'm not the easiest person to get along with."

"You?" the semi-sarcastic rejoinder. The good doctor smirked.

"Well, it's not just that Dixie's independent," he allowed. "I can get kind of moody."

"And opinionated," Johnny now smiled.

"Oh, yesss," the doctor agreed. "I am always right. Even if I'm wrong." He picked up his plate and Johnny's and brought them over to the sink. These were rinsed and stowed in the dishwasher with the silverware.

"So, what's first?" Kel asked as he picked up his coffee.

"Call your insurance agent first," Johnny said. "Then to the bank for your documents. Then the DMV if there's time."

"And the store for shoes," Kel stated as he looked at his footwear. He took his mug and went to the den where he knew the phone was. Johnny finished cleaning the kitchen and waited for the doctor to emerge.

The next three hours went fast. They were able to get to the bank and DMV. Then to May Company for some clothing and shoes. Finally the market for supplies.

Johnny noted that Brackett was starting to flag. His face was pale and conversation had dropped to monosyllabic answers. Swinging through the liquor section he added a bottle of Knob Creek to the basket. It was past time to get the man back home to relax.

It took a couple trips to bring everything inside. Dinner was slipped into the oven and a drink poured out. Johnny carried the drink down the hall to the guest bedroom.

"Doc?" he paused to knock on the door jamb. He found Kel sitting on the bed staring at a bag of clothing looking lost. Gently Gage moved next to him and put his free hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, Kel, why don't you let me help you," he said. He handed the drink over encouraging him to take a sip. Then he pulled a chair nearer and began opening packages.

"You want to launder these before you wear them?" he asked as bundles of socks and underwear were opened and separated. Negative shake of the head. Next polo and t-shirts were opened, tags removed. These were hung in the closet followed by detagged jeans and slacks. Pj's and slippers, tennis shoes and loafers were similarly treated and all the packaging shoved back into the sacks.

"There ya go," Johnny said. "Back in business! Let's go get dinner ready." He tugged on the unresistant man. Brackett followed him down the hall into the kitchen. The quiet man was seated at the table. Gage kept up a friendly chatter as he made a salad and garlic bread.

Soon dinner was on the table. Taking a deep breath Kel managed to shake some of the apathy off his shoulders.

"Sorry I'm such a bad guest," he said. Johnny waved it off.

"Three years ago I was sitting across from Roy in about the same shape," he said as he shook a little parmesan cheese over the steaming piece of lasagna on his plate. "You don't need to worry about me. And if I get to be 'too much', let me know."

"I've never had a problem with that," Kel said morosely. Gage took a careful look at the man.

"Doc, you're better than me," he said. "I tend to not complain to the right person when I'm upset. If I could be more direct I don't think I'd have half the trouble I get into. I just clam up and then I decide everything is my fault."

"You are good at guilt," Brackett agreed as he took a bite of salad. He chewed thoughtfully.

"How about we make a pact," the doctor said. "If I get you upset you tell me. I can guarantee that I'll get on your nerves!"

Johnny smiled. "As long as you promise to do the same."

"Deal," Kel offered his hand to seal the agreement.

Over the next two days Kelly Brackett slowly got his life together. His insurance agent came by to see him and took him to a car rental agency. Soon the doctor was independent once more with his own car.

He was back to work the following day. By the time Dixie and Joe came back Kel was no longer overwhelmed. There were nights Johnny found him looking overwhelmed, but he understood and helped his friend through the harsh emotions.

"Hey, Dix, welcome back!" Roy DeSoto said as he walked into the ER with his latest patient.

"Thanks, Roy," she replied. "Treatment room 3." She led the way in and watched as the elderly man was transferred to the exam table.

"Vitals," Morton directed. All personnel were busy. The portable cardiac monitor was replaced by the ER's. The doctor called for more medication to help stabilize the patient. Soon Roy was freed followed by Dixie.

"Need supplies?" she asked.

"We resupplied after the last run," Roy replied, "we're good." They saw the younger paramedic with Dr. Brackett at the nurse's station. It was apparent they were having a fine time, laughter dancing in their eyes.

"Well, I know I'll never do clothing again without checking the pockets!" the doctor was saying as he spread out a wad of paper that had been in his pocket.

"Geeze, didn't your mom teach ya anything?" Gage prodded him.

"Yes, of course!" Kel said stoutly. "You drive down to the local dry cleaner and say 'easy on the starch'." And they began to chuckle again.

"As I live and breath," Dixie held her hand to her chest. "I am hearing right? Dr. Kelly Brackett did laundry?"

"Yep," Gage said. "He's becoming quite the domestic. All he needed was the frilly pink apron."

"No way," he growled playfully. "I'll just use yours."

"You'd better hide the 'Kiss the Chef' apron Joanne gave you," Roy said helpfully.

"He hasn't quite got the knack of a gas burner yet," Gage said. "I limit his use of the stove and oven to when I'm home with the fire extinguisher." Dixie was confused.

"Why is Kel cooking over at your house?" she asked. The three men looked at one another.

"You didn't tell her?" Johnny asked in surprise.

"Tell me what?" she asked.

"She flew in last night," Kel said. "We never got around to discussing my new accommodations."

"Tell me what?" Dixie repeated.

"I think we should bow out of this discussion," Roy said as he propelled his partner away from the desk. "See you later!" Dixie now turned fully and moved in front of the doctor.

"Tell me what," no longer a question.

"Let's go get a cup of coffee," Kel countered and ushered her down the hall.

"YOUR APARTMENT BURNED DOWN AND YOU DIDN'T CALL ME!?" Dixie's voice rose above all other chatter. The entire dining room turned to stare at the extremely embarrassed doctor and irate nurse. One person immediately came to the table.

"What happened?" Joe Early demanded. It took all Kel's control not to cover his face and slink down in his chair.

"My apartment building burned to the ground," he said a patiently as possible. "I ended up at Johnny's home the next day." Now the older doctor sat down in a chair next to Dixie.

"You lost everything and you didn't call me?" he added his irate demand.

"You were giving a paper at the AMA convention and you," he nodded at Dixie, "were on a well-deserved vacation with your friends."

"Regardless, you should have called!" Dixie growled.

"I couldn't! All your flight information and accommodations were in the apartment," Brackett growled right back. "I got out in my pajamas! All I grabbed was my key ring."

"Then you should have called me!" Joe declared. "It wasn't like you didn't know where the convention was!"

"For goodness sakes, Joe! You were a keynote speaker!" Kel had all his ammunition ready. "Believe it or not Johnny was the best person to help me. He'd lost everything a few years back, remember?" Nurse and doctor considered this.

"Well, yes, I suppose he was a good choice to help," Dixie hedged. "But where are you going to stay?"

"You can move in with me!" Joe said stoutly.

"You have a one bedroom condo, Joe," Kel said. "Johnny has a three bedroom home. He put me up in his guest room."

"I just can't reconcile you and John Gage being roommates," Dixie said.

"We should start a pool," Joe said with a considering grin. "When will Kel run out screaming!"

"What do you mean, Kel?" Dixie proclaimed. "Johnny'll kick him out before that!"

Brackett just sat there, listening to his best friends, working out a bet regarding his living arrangements! Picking up his coffee he left the room. Maybe he and Johnny could work out a deal and profit from the situation! Brackett went to his office to think out his plan...


	2. Chapter 2

The Other Side

Chapter 2

The continuing saga of the Gage/Brackett experience....

Kel Brackett pushed open the door and switched on the entryway light. It was well after ten p.m. and he was exhausted. Keys were tossed in a basket on the side table along with his wallet and pocket change. Jacket hung on a hook. He flipped through the mail that had been tucked beside the basket. Nothing pressing.

He wandered into the kitchen turning on lights as he moved. He popped open the fridge and took stock of the leftovers. He noted the tupperware labeled 'JG' and smiled. Johnny wasn't usually concerned about food so it must have been something tasty.

Pulling open the lower drawer he discovered some already cooked chicken. The crisper contained a medley of lettuces ready to eat. Grabbing a plate he put together a salad with diced up chicken on top. A tomato joined in and a couple mushrooms sliced up to finish. Dressing.

It was week three of the Gage/Brackett experiment, as Early referred to their arrangement. The betting pool had extended to include various firefighters as well as staff at Rampart. During that time there had been no blow-ups. They co-existed amicably.

Not that there hadn't been any difficulties. There always were things to work out. Hence the initials on the leftovers and the two baskets on the entryway table. Kel learned how to prep groceries before they went into the fridge so meals could be made quickly and easily.

Take-out was becoming an endangered species! Of all the things to pick up from another bachelor, Brackett learned how simple making meals could be. Sure, he still liked his Chinese and Indian take out, but the junkier fast foods where disappearing from his diet. He knew he would lose some weight living here for a couple more months.

Checking the calendar he noted Gage would be home the following morning before he went back to the hospital. Also, there was a notation that Jenny and Chris would be spending two nights while their parents went on a well-deserved mini-vacation.

Johnny had been very upfront about visitors. As long as they let one another know, he had no problems. Kel had tested the waters by having Dixie over a couple times, once when Johnny was at work and once when he was home. He'd been a perfect room mate, disappearing into his room as the evening wound down. He'd even been pleasant the next morning when the three of them converged for coffee.

Dixie had been more than 'pleasant'. She'd gone out of her way to be extremely 'friendly'. It had been slightly embarrassing given she'd never been so clingy and demonstrative before, actually sitting on the good doctor's lap at the kitchen table. But Johnny had taken it in stride, not appearing to notice the overt difference in the nurse.

Until he asked what date she'd picked in the pool. Dixie turned all shades red prompting Kel to laugh uproariously.

"It's unfair trying to change the outcome," Gage had pointed out. After that Dixie returned to being herself and Johnny had headed out to work.

This would be the first time the kids would be over. Kel wondered briefly how they'd feel about their 'room' being taken over.

Finally, he cleaned up his mess and went to get ready for bed. It had been a long day and he was exhausted!

"Hey, Joe!" Dixie called over to the doctor, "guess who's visiting Johnny this weekend?" The older man looked over his glasses.

"Who?" he prompted.

"Roy's kids!" she smirked.

"Hey, good for me!" Joe responded. "My day's Sunday!"

"Are you two still betting on Kel and Johnny?" a disdainful Dr. Morton asked as he pulled a chart from the rack.

"Of course!" Dixie replied. "The pool's over 200 bucks! You want in?" Morton rolled his eyes.

"No!" he grumbled and returned to charting.

"Just wait 'til Kel gets in," Joe smirked. "I'll get him all riled up!"

"Joe, that's not fair!" Dixie protested. "You're trying to turn this to your favor!"

"Hey, I heard through the grapevine about your little ploy," Early laughed. The nurse considered blushing but didn't.

"You won't have any more luck than me!" she grumbled as she turned back to her paperwork.

Johnny pushed the door opened and tossed his keys and wallet in the basket. He noted Brackett's things still on the table and wandered back into the kitchen rubbing his face.

What a shift! Little sleep, lots of runs, terrible coffee. Plus, he'd been saddled with Brice. Normally he could get along with anyone but for some reason Brice had been on edge which caused him to be a more exacting pain than usual.

He found the kitchen empty and the coffee pot untouched. He quickly set up the pot and started the water heating. Then he went looking for his room mate.

"Kel?" he called down the hall. No response. The bathroom was empty so he ventured down a little farther to the doctor's room. Sitting on the bed, staring at his socks, was Kelly Brackett. Leaning quietly against the door jamb the paramedic tried again.

"Kel?" he gently called; no response. He moved carefully across the room not wanting to startle the man. He sat down on the edge of the bed next to the doc and waited. If anything, the smoke scent might get through to him.

After a long minute Brackett stirred. He sniffed the air and then glanced to his right.

"John?" he was lost.

"Hi, Kel," now the paramedic put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Something wrong with the socks?"

"Socks?" he asked, confused, staring at the socks in his hand. "Uh, no, they're ok."

"When do you need to be at work?" Gage inquired.

"Uh, now," Kel looked at the clock on the bedside. "Damn!"

"Kel, come have some coffee," he suggested. "I'll scramble up some eggs." Brackett looked at his friend, feeling bereft.

"It's been a month," he mumbled. "I was getting dressed and thought about what socks to wear and I couldn't find this one particular pair Dix gave me. I thought I'd be fine and here I am losing it over a stupid pair of socks!" A few tears streaked his face. Johnny waited patiently.

"Kel, it's ok," he soothed as he waited out his friend. "You know you're gonna have some bad days. You lost everything; the pain doesn't just turn off after a month!" He now slipped an arm around the trembling shoulder.

"I'm tired of crying on your shoulder!" Brackett pouted.

"Yeah, what's this make?" Johnny said sarcastically. "Third or fourth time? Trust me, the worst for me was crying on Chet's couch!"

"Think I'll pass on that," sniffed Kel.

"Good choice," Gage responded. They sat quietly for several minutes until the worst of the emotional jag concluded. Finally Kel moved back slightly and Johnny gave him some space, removing his arm.

"What about that coffee?" Kel asked hesitantly. He'd always been the strong, dominant male. Showing this weakness to John Gage was both frightening and liberating. And the man turned out to be completely trustworthy not discussing his problems with anyone else, including his partner.

That was another facet of his room mate. He and Roy were best friends. More than that. He just knew both men felt comfortable showing their own weaknesses to one another without hesitation. He never realized how important that was; a confidant, a support, a friend.

As he pulled on socks and toed on shoes he realized that as close as he and Joe were, as he and Dixie were, he never showed much weakness around either person. Deciding he was thinking too much he walked down the hallway into the kitchen drawn to the fragrant coffee pot. Johnny was on the phone.

"Hey, Dr. Early, yeah, Dr. Brackett is still here," he stopped and stared at the paramedic.

"Naw, he's fine. I had a really rough shift and he's taking pity on me and doing breakfast," Gage said smoothly. "Yeah, he'll be in soon, that ok? Great, I really appreciate it! Bye!" and he hung up the phone,

"I'm doing breakfast?" Kel asked skeptically.

"Yes, you're doing breakfast," Johnny explained as he pulled out a frying pan and got the eggs and cheese. "I never said you were cooking breakfast." Brackett had to laugh.

"Your shades of meaning wear sunglasses," he said as he poured out two mugs of coffee. He stood sipping contently, letting the morning continue, watching the younger man easily create an omelette.

"There some fruit bread left?" the cook asked. Emily Stanley had been in a baking mood and sent over pumpkin bread for the crew.

"Yes," Kel reported as he pulled out the treat. He then took the butter from the fridge and set both on the table. Soon they were sitting down with half a steaming omelette in front of each of them. Fresh coffee poured out, bread liberally buttered.

"So, you ready for the invasion tonight?" Johnny asked as he lifted a fork full of eggy goodness to his mouth.

"Sure," he responded. "Hope the kids don't mind I've taken their room!"

"Naw, I already explained it to 'em last week when I went over for dinner," Gage replied. "They're pretty good about respecting privacy, so just close the door if it gets too crazy."

"Ok," Brackett agreed as he ate his breakfast. Soon, dishes were rinsed and put in the dishwasher and he was out the door heading to work. Hopefully today wouldn't be as crazy as the previous.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Special thanks to Dark Amethyst for nudging me!

It seemed that the day was full of children! Every single child that came through was sent directly to Kelly Brackett. If he were paranoid, which he wasn't, he'd think someone was setting him up!

He'd just finished stitching up a knee that had been used to 'open' a glass door when he was pulled out for a severe asthma attack. The little boy wasn't so bad, but his mother was beside herself. He had a hard time calming her down so he could help the child! Carole finally came in and took parent out to 'fill out a form' allowing Kel to get to work.

"So, do you think he's frazzled?" Joe asked Dixie as they charted at the nurses' station.

"Oh, yes, you've certainly done a thorough job," the feisty nurse replied. Mike glanced up.

"Now what are you two up to?" he asked as he closed his chart.

"Just making sure Kel gets enough experience with children," Early smirked.

"Oh, don't tell me," Morton frowned. "Something about that stupid betting pool?"

"Yep, just guaranteeing victory," the older doctor said. Mike shook his head and went down the hall to the lounge. He did not like the ongoing teasing about Gage and his boss.

Actually, he felt sympathetic towards Brackett. Who in their right mind would stay with that hyperactive dynamo? Yet somehow the two balanced one another, kind of like DeSoto balanced out Gage in the field.

Well, living arrangements aside, it was absolutely unfair to saddle the head of ER with every child Los Angeles had to send in. As he sipped his coffee he decided to clue him in to the meddling of Early and Head Nurse.

Kelly Brackett tiredly pushed his hair back as he sat in his car. It was a long, long day punctuated with lots of kids and his two friends conspiring together to drive him nuts. He'd been shocked when Morton told him about the conspiracy. Instead of confronting them he worked out a trade with the younger doctor. Between the two of them conspiring, the other's efforts were pretty much negated.

But that didn't 'negate' the fact there were two children inside the house. Dixie had gone out of her way to tell every amusing story she knew about the two either directly to him or within hearing distance. All Brackett had was Johnny's assurance they would respect his privacy.

Right.

Finally he opened the car door, picked up his jacket and headed for the house. Coming through the front door he was not assaulted by loud noise (something he'd been assured he'd would be). He tossed his keys and assorted paraphernalia into his basket, picked up his mail and headed down to his room.

Still no kids. Nor room mate. He changed into more comfortable clothing and toed on the slippers he'd been given the first day he'd spent in this home. Clothing was neatly hung up and he decided to find out where everyone was hiding.

Heading down to the kitchen he finally heard voices. Young, happy voices and the deeper voice of the paramedic. He stopped in the doorway.

On a chair wearing an apron that was just a little too big, stood Jenny DeSoto. She was tearing lettuce up and putting it in a salad bowl. Next to her was Johnny and on the other side was another chair containing an apron-wearing Chris DeSoto. He was nearly elbow deep in a bowl busily squishing something with his hands.

"You look busy!" Kel said as he moved towards the cupboard intending to snag a tumbler for a drink.

"Hi Dr. Brackett," Chris called out first followed by his sister.

"Hey, Doc," Johnny smiled. "We're making hamburgers for dinner. We have enough for you if you're interested." Kel moved over to check out the prep area. He saw that Chris was wearing disposable gloves.

"Sounds good," he decided. He put some ice into the glass and then pulled down the bottle of Maker's Mark. After pouring out a stingy shot he put the bottle back and leaned against the counter watching the busy chefs.

"Uncle Johnny started the charcoal and I get to cook!" Chris said with some pride, "just like Dad!"

"You're Dad's a fine cook," Brackett said. "I'm sure you're just as good." The boy blushed.

"Well, Uncle Johnny says so, but Dad never lets me at home," he confessed.

"I help mommy make salad all the time!" Jenny said happily. "It's my 'pecilty'." Kel had to chuckle at her locution. Johnny lifted her down and sent her for the cherry tomatoes and pre-shredded carrots. Chris began to form patties and place them on a plate.

"Can you check the coals for me, Doc?" Gage asked.

"Sure," he headed out the back door and noted the round Weber bar-b-cue had been lowered. He gave it a shake, moved the coals around a bit and then put the grill on.

Coming back into the kitchen he noted the salad was done and the girl was placing various condiments and dressings on the table. Gage was placing paper plates, napkins and silverware out for her to finish off the table.

"Just about there, John," he said as he retrieved his drink. He thought about retiring to another room, but the children were happy and Johnny was bouncing about making sure everything was getting ready without doing it himself. Kel realized it would be so much easier to get dinner together by himself, but the younger man knew the kids wanted to help and, further, he seemed to know what each was capable of. A pan of french fries was put into the oven.

"Get me the purple onion and big tomato, sweetie," Gage asked. "Chris, looks good. Why don't you toss those gloves and wash up so we can get them cooking, ok?"

" 'k,!" he responded as he climbed down and pushed the chair over to the sink. It seemed that this was a normal evening for them. Gage quickly sliced up both onion and tomatoes and put them on a separate plate that already had some lettuce on it. This was handed off to Jenny to put on the table.

Soon they were out laying burgers on the grill. Kel was intrigued how Johnny kept them safe yet allowed them to cook. They sat on the porch watching their meal and talking about school. He found himself listening and then entering into the conversation. Although Jenny wouldn't start kindergarden until the fall she had plenty of other experiences that enabled her to hold her own. Chris, the big first grader, was an expert on all things school and happily discussed the difficult job he had learning.

Burgers were carefully turned and Jenny was sent inside with the dirty plate. She returned with a clean plate that had sliced cheese on it.

"Do you want cheese, Dr. Brackett?" Chris asked.

"Yes, sounds good, Chris," he replied. He watched as the cheese was carefully placed over the burgers. Soon the burgers were placed on the plate and carried inside while Johnny covered the cooker with its lid.

Re-entering the kitchen the aroma of french fries filled the air. Kel offered to pull them out and lightly salt them. He found himself being in charge of dividing them between the four plates. Two glasses of milk appeared as Johnny popped open a beer for himself. He opted for a beer as well and they all sat down to eat.

It wasn't so bad. The kids were, well, kids and the conversation was more in line with the things they did and enjoyed. Clean up was simple, with the children clearing the table while John loaded the dishwasher.

As the evening continued the kids were entertained playing various board games. Sometimes the three would play separately, and sometimes the paramedic teamed with Jenny. Kel had started the evening reading but the quiet laughter coming from the kitchen drew him back in and he found himself playing a game called Memory™. Losing handily to a five and seven year old he realized he was actually having fun.

When 8:30 rolled around each child took a bath and got ready for bed. Their sleeping bags were spread out on Johnny's floor. Jenny went down first, with a special story from her uncle. Chris stayed up 'til 10. But he also received a story as he curled down. Once both charges were asleep Gage returned to the kitchen and poured out his own measure of whiskey over ice.

"ahhh," he sighed as he reclined in his lounge chair. He loved having the kids over, but there was a lot of responsibility in caring for them. He also wanted them to have a good time and be able to do things they might not get to do at home. At least dinner had been a success.

He was also glad that Kel had been at ease. He didn't want to subject his friend to too much stress, especially since he'd heard from the grapevine (the head grape being Dwyer) that the doctor had been tormented at work. Why his friends were running this betting pool against him and the Doc was beyond his reckoning.

"Well, got the rug rats to bed?" Kel asked as he entered the living room. He took in the body draped over lounge and ottoman and wondered how tired the younger man was.

"Yep," Gage said. "They're always good about going to bed for me. Of course, tomorrow we're going to the La Brea Tar Pits and they know that'll be a fun treat."

"The tar pits?" Kel asked. "How'd you come up with that? I'd have thought they would want to go to Disneyland or Knotts."

"Hey, I'm not made of money!" Gage scoffed. "Anyway, Chris went there several years back and Jenny's never been. He told her all about the 'extincted animals' and they are excited about seeing real paleontologists at work." Brackett lifted an eyebrow.

"Paleontologists?" he queried. "Pretty big word for a seven year old.

"You'd be surprised," Gage gave a lopsided grin. "Chris really latched on to dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals. Joanne told me that most kids are like that, get interested in something and become little experts."

"Ah," Kel nodded as he slid down onto the couch. "I knew everything about construction vehicles. Could tell you how each one worked. My dad used to take me to different sites so I could watch. Then I got into trains." The warm memories filled him. Gage sat quietly allowing the man to wax poetic about 'train spotting' and getting to go to the train yards.

"Were you an expert on anything, Johnny?" he suddenly asked.

"I was expert at avoiding my uncle whenever possible," came the less than enthusiastic reply. That was a conversation stopper. Johnny looked up and realized what he'd done.

"Damn, Doc, I'm sorry," he said. "My childhood wasn't very good. Maybe that's why I get so fixated on stuff now. Poor Roy has to put up with my ramblings. I thought he was gonna blow a gasket when I was researching beds a couple years back!"

"Beds?" Kel latched on to the thread like a lifeline.

"Yep," Gage's grin reappeared. "I must have read every article I could find. Even went to the library to look up old Consumer Reports. The only thing that saved him was the kids. They loved trying out beds with me. I think Jenny bounced on every mattress in existence!"

The idea of John Gage going from mattress store to mattress store with a three year old and 5 year old caused Kel to snicker.

"I bet you were a hit with all the sales people!" he managed. Good humor restored they talked about some of the crazy things they'd done. Kel admitted to have gotten into dance lessons with Dixie. Dixie was great, until they got to western swing and line dancing. She'd more than balked.

"Didn't like the yee-haw stuff, eh?" Johnny's eyes sparkled.

"That's putting it mildly!" Kel said ruefully. "I thought she would never talk to me again!"

"I know some good bars," Gage said slyly. "They have open dance lessons a couple nights a week. I liked doing the line dances because you didn't need to bring a partner. Plus, there's always a couple extra girls looking for a dance partner." Brackett returned the grin.

"We might have to investigate," he said. They talked a little while longer. John finally called it a night and headed to bed.

The following morning he was woken by giggling and shushing as someone quietly closed his door. Checking the clock he realized it was after 8 am, so he did technically get to sleep in. He contemplated rolling over, but his curiosity got the better of him. He'd never really been around many children except at social gatherings and in stores. Admittedly, he only noticed the latter when there was a tantrum going down. Pulling on his robe and slippers he stopped in the bathroom then once more walked into the kitchen.

This time the kids were at the table and Johnny was cooking. The toaster had been moved to the table top and Chris was manning the bread. Milk was poured and a cup of coffee rested near the chef.

"Good morning Dr. Brackett!" two voices chirped.

"Good morning Chris, Jenny," he smiled as he moved to the coffee pot. "Morning, John."

"Mornin' Doc, want scrambled eggs?" Gage asked.

"Sounds good," he replied. He took his cup of coffee and joined the table group. He noted the ever-present peanut butter, a bowl of apple sauce, butter, and jam. Toast was being assembled by the intrepid crew.

"Uncle Johnny's," Jenny said decisively as one piece of toast was spread with the peanut butter. The next several pieces were buttered and set on different plates.

"Do you want some toast, Dr. Brackett?" Chris asked politely.

"Please, two slices," he said. Soon Jenny gave him his own plate and pushed butter and jam towards him.

Johnny began plating up and carried plates to the table. Kel topped off their coffee mugs and picked up the salt shaker. He then watched the strange behavior of his table mates. Applesauce was passed around. It was spread on a piece of toast then scrambled eggs were piled on top. The sound of satisfied crunching filled the room.

"I have never seen anyone do that," Kel spluttered. Three pairs of eyes turned on him and looked guilty.

"Don't tell mommy!" Jenny begged.

"Please!" Chris added.

"Uh, Roy and Joanne don't really think it's appropriate to eat breakfast like this," Johnny explained.

"Well, it's a little strange, but people put bacon and marmalade on their toast so who am I to judge?" Kel said reasonably.

"What's marm-lade?" the little girl asked.

"It's an orange jam," he explained. "I like it sometimes." Feeling guilty for ruining their secret pleasures, the doctor put some applesauce on his toast and balanced some eggs on that. He took a bite and chewed thoughtfully. Then he looked at the unlikely combo.

"That's good!" he declared.

"Yeah, we know," Chris sighed. "But try 'splaining that to Mom and Dad!" With an indulgent smile Kel returned to his breakfast.

Clean up was in full swing when Brackett turned his attention back to the older Desoto child.

"So, Chris, are you looking forward to going to the tar pits?" he asked innocently. Suddenly he found himself the recipient of a long dissertation on prehistoric mammals and the tar pits themselves. The boy knew a lot about the site and the fossils found there. Instead of being bored, he found himself intrigued.

"Have you ever been to the tar pits, Doc?" Johnny asked.

"No, I haven't," he replied as he continued to sip coffee.

"Ah," was the only comment.

"What do you mean by that?" Kel countered.

"Just, 'ah'," Johnny said as he wiped down the table.

"Yes?" he prompted.

"Well, for such an educated man who grew up in Los Angeles you've missed a lot of history," Gage said. "I mean, you know Disneyland and Knotts, but I bet you've never been to the Getty or to the Bolsa Chica Conservancy."

"Uh, no," he hesitated. Here his room mate, the big masculine firefighter, had been to the Getty Museum?

"What about the Natural History Museum?" Chris put in his two cents.

"Or Atlantis Park with the dragon?" Jenny added. Bombarded by questions Kel had to rethink his high and mighty ego. He may be an elite physician, but he'd never experienced some of the most important places in So. California!

He wasn't sure about the dragon part though.

"No, I haven't," he admitted. "Maybe I should tag along with you guys today!" Again, three sets of disbelieving eyes.

"It's not really that great, Dr. Brackett," Chris said. "Not if all you've done is Disneyland." That did it. No kid was going to accuse him of being shallow!

"If you and Uncle Johnny think it's cool, then I need to go with you!" he insisted.

"It's ok, Dr. Bracket," Jenny tried to save him. "I never been to the pits or the Getie either." Which meant she had been to Bolsa Chica and the Natural History Museum! A four year old with more cultural experience!!!

"May I join you today?" he asked Jenny formally. Her face lit up with a smile.

" 'course, Dr. Brackett," she grinned.

"Cool!" Chris added. Johnny just shook his head. He'd never believe Dr. Brackett would want to be around kids and now he'd signed on to the excursion. He wondered if the betting pool would be over as of tonight.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Kel Brackett looked out the window at the traffic and once more wondered about his sanity. It was his day off. He should be doing laundry and relaxing with a good book. He was in a car on the West 10 Freeway in bumper to bumper traffic heading towards a museum that sat on a tar pit. In a not very good area. With two kids and a hyperactive paramedic his two friends had been warning him about for weeks!

He felt excited.

Ridiculous. He was a well-respected physician, in charge of the busiest ER in the state. He was sought after as key-note speaker at international conferences.

And he was unaccountably excited about going to a museum that show cased.... tar pits.

"Look, Uncle Johnny!" Chris shouted. "The sign!"

"Yep, La Brea Avenue," he said. "We get off the freeway here!" He easily slid off and headed towards the right. The rover maneuvered through the street and when they reached Wilshire they turned left. Chris was twisted in his seat belt watching out the window.

"THERE Uncle Johnny!" he nearly sprang off his seat, but the belt held him down. Kel looked at the sign "Hancock Park" and glimpsed a... mammoth???

"Yep, Ace, I know!" the paramedic said calmly as he turned the corner and drove a half block before turning into a well-fenced parking area.

"They clear the park every night," he said casually to Kel. The doctor looked around the well-kept grounds, the high, spiked fences. It seemed to be a citadel. He glanced back at the kids. Chris was over the moon excited. Jenny was apprehensive.

"Ok, kids," Johnny directed. "Let's go!" He parked and picked up a daypack which was slung over his back. Next he took Jenny out of the car and balanced her on his hip as he directed Chris's exit.

"Remember, Chris, stay close!" he cautioned.

"Oh, Uncle Johnny!" the boy retorted. "I 'member the rules!" Kel watched as the child moved around the car and waited patiently. The paramedic continued to carry the five-year-old and allow the excited boy to pull on his shirt. They walked over the sidewalk that meandered around a large, grass-covered bunker topped with a metal facade. Occasionally a rock-fresco broke through with carvings of animals.

As they curved around the doctor could see a lake surrounded by another fence. Chris was jumping up and down pointing at life-sized statues of mammoths. Gage easily carried his burden to the fence so that the boy could take in the entire scene: a mammoth was struggling in the lake while two others, an adult and smaller mammoth, looked on.

Kel could tell the boy was thrilled. Jenny, on the other hand, was wide-eyed and a bit apprehensive. The paramedic was explaining the scene to her, quietly reassuring her she was safe.

"Look, Dr. Brackett!" Chris grabbed his hand and tugged on it. "See? See the daddy? He went in to get a drink and he got stuck! That's why they find so many bones in the tar pits. The animals got trapped and sank into the sticky tar."

"Why did they even go out on that?" Kel found himself asking. "It must have smelled."

" 'Cause when it rained the water covered the top of the tar," Chris explained patiently. "It looked like a lake. The mammoths would go in to bathe and would get stuck. Maybe sometimes they'd get out but not all the time. Not only the mammoths got stuck, either. Littler animals got caught, too! We can see them in the museum!"

Brackett found himself caught, too. Chris DeSoto was a wealth of knowledge and exuberant, to boot. From the lake they walked down a ramp into the museum itself. He noticed Johnny paying for admission and resolved to pay for lunch.

Jenny was still very reluctant to get down. Chris had no such problem and quickly went to a display featuring big metal plungers. This was a hands-on to show how difficult it would be to get out of tar. They tugged and pulled and groaned as it proved extremely difficult.

As they continued throughout the museum Johnny watched Kel and Chris interact. He smiled as the staid doctor got down on his haunches to explore a case of bones with the boy. With the two of them completely enthralled with the displays he was able to concentrate on Jenny.

He could tell the young girl was thoroughly overwhelmed with the large animals. He skirted the life-sized mammoth complete with hair as well as the huge set of mammoth bones that nearly touched the ceiling. Instead he went along the garden edge and settled in a cubby that had stuffed animals and books to read. He allowed her to latch onto a small stuffed mammoth and choose a book for him. He sat down, back against the glass and Jenny settled on his lap. She calmed as he read to her.

When they finished the book the young girl was much more interested in the things around her - as long as she held her uncle's hand tight! Gage made sure he chose their path carefully, not wanting to scare her. Around the corner and at the far end he could see Chris staring through a floor to ceiling window. As he came closer he could see Brackett next to him and they were talking to a man on the other side of the glass.

"Look Jenny," he said quietly. "Chris is talking with the paleontologist, the scientist who works with the fossils." This appeared to be not too frightening and she allowed herself to be placed where she could see the woman and her table. The scientist showed the small pieces of skeleton she was cleaning.

Knowing Chris would be there a while Johnny finished walking through the museum with Jenny. They found another area set up with simple books as well as more detailed research books. He once more folded his long, lean, form on the floor, against the wall, and went through several books.

Fortunately, Chris and Brackett showed up about the time they'd gotten through all the books.

"Mom gave me some money for the gift shop," Chris said with a smile.

"Great. Your dad gave me some for Jenny, so let's go see what looks good!" Johnny said as he stood up with a stretch. Kel followed along.

The gift shop wasn't too big and had a lot of things a child with a little money could buy, from 25¢ erasers to books and models that cost more. In the glass case were more expensive offerings. Still following Chris he looked at all the books there were. The boy was very interested in these and began to go through each, separating the ones he could afford first then looking at each carefully.

Jenny went straight for the plush animals. Here Johnny picked out the ones within her budget. She didn't know, although Chris did, that their uncle would supplement their money within reason.

Johnny had to suppress a smile as the little girl weighed out her options. He was impressed when she first returned the animals that weren't extinct, leaving a mammoth, a sabercat and a t-rex. Why the dinosaurs were there was beyond him, but he supposed there weren't many places to buy tar pit animals.

Glancing over he spied Chris still mulling over his choices. Then he spotted Kel looking in the glass cases. Something had caught the man's attention and he moved slightly to see.

Inside the case was a collection of fanciful creatures made out of various scrap metals. He could discern bicycle chains forming bodies and then nails, hinges and other bits and pieces. The clerk, sensing a possible sale, took out several for him to touch. The doctor's hands gently handled two figures, but stayed the longest on one piece. Then a smile and what looked like a rueful shake of head as the man backed away and returned to Chris.

Soon both children had made their selections. Johnny suggested they each choose a post card to send to their parents. He asked Kel to supervise them as he brought the book and mammoth to the counter. He quietly spoke with the clerk who grinned.

Two postcards were presented to the paramedic who handed them over to the clerk to add to the bag. He paid for the items and then tucked the sack into his backpack for later.

"Oooh! We get to go to the pit!" Chris clapped his hands together.

"Of course!" Johnny easily smiled. "Can't come here without going out to see what's happening."

"They won't be working out there now," Chris said as his sister skipped slightly ahead of the men. Kel looked at the boy.

"Why not?" he asked. It wasn't raining, so why couldn't they work outside?

"See, Doctor Brackett, it's winter," he said patiently once more in teaching mode. "The tar is too cold to work in and the water from the last week's rain is still there. They only work in the summer and fall when it's hotter and the tar is warm." Once again Johnny suppressed a chuckle. He didn't want to discourage Chris from sharing. He especially didn't want to hurt Kel's feelings!

Pit 91 was empty, although there was a docent in the visitor's viewing area who happily answered the scores of questions one energetic boy could ask. Even Brackett got into reading the signs explaining what was being dug up in each quadrant.

"Boy, it'd hurt if you fell down there!" Chris pointed out. "It's deep and all those metal supports and stuff are really hard."

"Yes, I'd bet there'd be broken bones at least," Brackett agreed.

"Uncle Johnny?" Jenny tugged. "My tummy hurts!" Kel turned quickly in full doctor mode.

"Where does it hurt, Jennifer?" he asked as he knelt down by her ready to diagnose something terrible. His mind ran over possibilities as he gently pressed against her stomach. Johnny put a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Doc, it's lunch time," he said with a grin. Now Jenny's 'tummy' growled. Kel's head dropped for a minute before he started laughing himself.

"Sometimes I expect the worst!" he smiled.

"Only sometimes?" Gage teased back.

"Where are we eating?" Chris asked, being practical. "McDonalds?"

"No, I thought it would be fun to eat over in the museum cafeteria. Not at the Page Museum, but over at the art museum," Johnny explained.

"You know about the art museum?" Brackett asked as they began herding the children out of the building.

"I've been," Johnny said. "Not all my dates are at the bowling alley!"

"Really?" Kel pretended surprise. "To hear the gossip you bowl or you go to the movies." Johnny thought about being indignant, but caught the sly twinkle in the doctor's eyes.

"Jerk," he teased back. They found the little cafe quite easily. The food was inexpensive, plus it had kid-friendly fare. Chris happily ordered chicken nuggets shaped like dinosaurs while Jenny decided a grilled cheese sandwich was just fine. The adults went for soup and sandwiches. Chips, milk, sparkling water.

"Sparkling water?" Johnny raised an eyebrow. "Talk about the stereo type!" In retaliation the doctor swapped it out for a bottle of Coke™ and glass of ice. At the register Kel took out his wallet waving the paramedic off. He paid and then picked up his tray.

Jenny happily bit into her sandwich. She had her own bag of chips and some sliced carrots and celery sticks. There were two containers of ranch dressing. The smaller one was placed by her while the bigger went between Johnny and Chris.

"Double-dipper," Gage commented with a slight nod towards Jenny. Kel smirked. It seemed the man actually did take care of the kids often enough to know the ropes. They were nice and quiet for a few minutes as lunches were enjoyed.

Chris finished first and threw away his trash. He carefully wiped off his hands and asked for his book. After examining said hands and passing inspection, John opened up his backpack allowing the boy to get out the sack. First, the plush mammoth was placed on the chair behind Jenny. Then the book was pulled out.

"What's this, Uncle Johnny?" he asked as he held up a tissue-wrapped package.

"Oh, that's for Dr. Brackett," Johnny grinned.

"Cool," Chris set the package next to Kel's tray and retreated to his chair to read. The doctor looked at the package and then the paramedic.

"It's just something to start your knick-knack collection," he explained. "After my fire, Roy and Cap began collecting little things for me. Well, Emily and Cap, they were a bit more... generous. They found a Kachina doll like one I had and then some weavings. Roy got me some of the silly things I had to play with."

Kel hefted the package, his eyes widening.

"You didn't!" he said and then eagerly opened the tissue paper exposing a dragon. The sinuous body was formed from a bicycle chain with different pieces of metal welded on to make a head, legs and claws.

"Noticed you lookin'," Johnny shrugged. "And since your friends still haven't gotten over their silly betting pool..." He was rewarded with a happy grin.

"Thanks, John," came the sincere reply.

"That's neat, Dr. Brackett," Chris said as he looked up.

"Yeah, it is," the normally straight-laced man said, his eyes traveling over the fanciful creature.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Kel Brackett once more entered the house, this time with Dixie. She'd 'saved' him from the kids the night before, offering dinner and a more adult sleepover. Not that he needed saving!

Of course, there were rewards for allowing himself to be saved and he fully enjoyed them.

"I see your landlord is out," Dixie said with a grin.

"Probably taking the kids home," Kel commented.

"So, should we avail ourselves of the master bedroom?" Dixie said suggestively. Brackett looked at her with a quizzical expression.

"Johnny's room?" he asked, incredulous. "Why would I want to use Johnny's room?" She rubbed against him.

"Ah, it would be.... fun?" she suggested. He rolled his eyes.

"What's the betting line on that?" he asked. "You and Joe have a side bet?" Dixie blushed.

"No side bet," she countered. "Just wondering."

"Sorry, Dix, I have no interest in Johnny's bedroom," Kel said stiffly. It was a side of the woman he'd never seen before!

"I'm just teasing you, Kel," she backpedaled. The betting pool was getting a bit out of control and she thought she could end it by putting a wedge between the two friends. Now she felt ashamed.

"The betting pool is getting a bit... crazy," she admitted. "You and Johnny certainly have gone longer than anyone could imagine."

"Maybe the betting pool should be drained," Kel grumbled as he went to pour drinks. "Use the money for peds or something."

"I could suggest it," she said as accepted the iced whiskey and took a sip, feeling the slight burn. "But I don't think everyone would agree. It's up to $300 now." This disgruntled the doctor more.

"It's sad; my friends are betting on my unhappiness," he said. She was saved by a knock on the door.

"Hey, Kel, thought I'd drop by and see how you're doing," Dr. Joe Early smiled. "Dix?"

"Hi Joe," the nurse gave the man a quick kiss before heading for the couch.

"If your pouring, I'm in," the grey-haired doctor said. Kel actually debated not getting a drink for his friend. With a shrug he handed him his own glass and turned to go back to the kitchen.

"Oooh, is he getting upset with Johnny?" Early asked in a soft, but excited voice.

"No, he's getting upset with us and the betting pool!" Dixie replied as quietly. Neither saw Kel standing in the doorway, unable to hear them. They whispered under his observation for a few moments.

The front door opened and one tired paramedic ambled in. He tossed his things in his basket and said 'hi' to the two on the couch.

"I'm peopled out, Doc, I'll be in my room for awhile," he said softly as he moved down the hall, patting his room mate on the back as he went.

"I'm peopled out, too," he muttered before walking into the front room. He pretended to be interested in the conversation with his friends, but he was too upset to keep it up.

"Hey, why don't we go out for an early dinner?" Joe suggested.

"That sounds good," Dixie agreed. "What do you feel like?"

"Italian," Joe suggested. "There's Marri's or Frantone's."

"Great," she said. "Let's go. Need to change, Kel?"

"No, I'm not really hungry right now," Brackett said as he twirled his drink in his hand. "Think I'll stay home and enjoy the peace and quiet."

"I bet you will," Joe chortled. "Two, no three kids tussling around and making noise is enough to drive anyone crazy."

"They didn't drive me crazy," Kel said firmly, "and Johnny does not regress no matter what you think." He glared at his friends. Both shifted uneasily under those angry eyes.

"Well, then, I suppose I'll take Dixie out," Joe said as he set his glass on the coffee table. She followed suit and soon they were escorted out the front door. Kel didn't bother seeing them to the car. Stomping back into the front room Brackett picked up both tumblers and carried them into the kitchen, dumping the contents into the sink.

He leaned against the sink, trying to push down his anger. How dare they bet on HIM?! He'd lost his home and Johnny had offered him shelter. Understanding. Something he certainly didn't get from his friends.

"Doc?" Johnny came into the kitchen and saw how upset he was at once. He lifted his hand and carefully placed it on the man's back.

"I will NOT cry on your shoulder," Brackett swore. Then the paramedic pulled closer putting his arm around his shoulder. With a shuddering breath the doctor tried to stand firm.

"It's ok, I changed my shirt and everything," Gage tugged him closer. Kel sniffed then leaned against the lean, strong body. He struggled to contain tears, but allowed himself to have the comfort.

"I gather Dixie and Dr. Early weren't the best visitors," he tentatively suggested as the shudders seemed to come under control.

"No, not at all," Kel allowed. "They persist in betting on us. Makes me feel like they want me to be miserable. I'm tired of being miserable!" Johnny let him vent.

"I lost everything. EVERYTHING. They're my closest friends!" he emoted. "And then he made sure I got every kid that came into the ER Friday and she suggested we try out your bed!" Gage just held on as the doctor turned and sunk his face onto his shoulder.

"AND I KEEP CRYING ON YOUR DAMNED SHOULDER!" Kel screamed into the damp shoulder, letting the man hold him. They stood there a long moment, then the doctor finally gave in, clutching on to his friend as he angrily cried.

Johnny gently rubbed aimless circles on Kel's back as he made soft, indistinct noises to comfort him. The crying became sobbing and for a few moments Gage thought the man would totally collapse. He knew he had back when he lost his place.

As the storm raged the paramedic wished Brackett's friends could understand how much they were hurting him. It was funny for a while. Maybe the time it took to first utter the concept. Now it had taken on gargantuan proportions. No way it'd stop until Kel had moved out.

Hmmmm.... Maybe it was time to take Mike Stoker up on his offer to place a bet for him.

Finally the sobbing eased up as Kel began to come back to himself. He didn't let go for quite some time allowing himself the comfort being offered. Then he let Johnny help him to the table to sit down. Two fresh drinks were poured, one set in front of the emotionally exhausted man.

"How about some dinner," Gage suggested. "We could broil some steak." Kel thought about it.

"I want to go out," he said vaguely. "I want seafood."

"Fish and chips?" the paramedic gently teased. After a long moment of silence Bracket raised tear-washed eyes and gave a very small smile.

"No, I know where I want to go. I'm paying and you're going to order what you want," he said a little more firmly. Johnny eyed him a bit nervously.

"Do I need a suit and tie?" he tentatively asked. "Cummberbund? Tux?" Kel actually smiled.

"No, no cummberbund or tie," he assured. "But a dress shirt and jacket would be appropriate." He sipped at his drink. "And I need to at least wash my face in cold water."

Taking their drinks they wandered down to their rooms to change. All joking aside, Johnny did know how to dress appropriately. As he buttoned up the off-white silk shirt he contemplated an appropriate set of cufflinks. Grey wool trousers were pulled on with a thin belt. A quick brush in the mirror and he was ready. He left the room with his dinner jacket over his shoulder.

Brackett was ready and did a double take when he saw his room mate. He was tempted to drive by Marri's and Frantone's looking for his friends just to prove Johnny could dress up. He had become tired of the constant teasing about the blue jeans and sneakers that the younger man favored off-duty.

Johnny was glad that the doctor looked better. Cold water had taken away the red eyes and a clean shirt did wonders to freshen him up. He was curious about exactly where he was going, especially with the admonishment to order anything he wanted. He figured it would be pricey.

They climbed into the new convertible Kel had allowed himself to buy with the insurance money. He felt more relaxed now as he headed down to Long Beach. His passenger was inclined to quiet which suited him just fine.

After twenty minutes they could see the sun setting over the ocean. It would be an early dinner, which was just fine as both had to work the following day. Johnny looked over the boats in the marina as they were driving by. A line of pelicans dipped low over the boating channel. Finally Kel turned onto a side road that would bring them right to the water.

Signs were lighting up. Joe's Crab Shack, Houlihans, Khoury's, Captain Jacks and McKenna's. The car slipped into a space, the top returned to cover, and they both got out.

"They have a jazz combo on the weekends," Kel explained as he led Johnny towards McKenna's. "Excellent seafood, great wine list. I've brought Dixie here countless times." There were a few people waiting for tables. Kel put his name on the list and headed over to the bar. He called for Knob Creek. Johnny opted for a beer they had on tap.

Dinner was as Brackett had promised, excellent, from the salad to the creme brulee. After a little too much wine he gave Gage the car keys. As was normal, the paramedic had his one beer and then switched to coffee.

"You know, Doc, I was thinking," he said as they arrived back home. "Maybe you and I should put in a bet."

"Dixie and Joe would never go for that!" Kel said, tossing wallet and pocket contents in the basket.

"Who said we'd be the ones to give 'em the money?" he said with a sly grin. "Mike Stoker offered. We could kick in forty bucks saying you'd move out once you bought a place." Brackett's face slowly lit up with his own sly grin.

"And when we win it'd fund the housewarming party," Johnny added.

"I'm in," Kel agreed. He picked up his wallet and pulled out a twenty, setting it on the entryway table.

The next afternoon....

"Hey, Dixie?" Joe Early sidled up to his favorite nurse. "Guess what sucker bet I got today?"


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The next afternoon....

"Hey, Dixie?" Joe Early sidled up to his favorite nurse. "Guess what sucker bet I got today?"

Week five passed without much fanfare. Every time Kel caught his friends discussing the pool he'd roll his eyes and stifle his smile. Occasionally he'd make a remark about his living arrangement just to fan the fire. Oh, and up the bidding wars, too!

He realized just how smart Johnny was. They only had to put down one bet unlike everyone else who were having to re-bet as each deadline passed. At the rate it was going he could have his housewarming catered by McKenna's including the jazz combo!

This morning he was particularly happy. The insurance company had finally finished reviewing all his records and had cut a sizeable check for his condo. The money was in the bank and he could access it in a few days when the check cleared.

In talking with Johnny he decided to find a house to buy instead of a condo. He really liked the small neighborhood and the neighbors were friendly. Maybe a place would open up near the paramedic!

He had brought along the real estate ads from the morning paper to peruse during his lunch. He would look around to see what was available then probably use Johnny's realtor to help him.

It wasn't the best time to buy a house in So. California from what he'd read. It was a 'seller's' market and it would be hard to get a deal. But he had a great down payment and a secure job with a perfect credit history so he would be able to get a loan.

Johnny made him sit down and list what he wanted in a house. He made Kel promise not to make an offer until he'd waited 24 hours and shown the place to friends. He glanced at the list.

Two to three bedrooms. Large backyard. Single story. Open kitchen. Front room. Good traffic flow for having gatherings. Quiet neighborhood. Johnny added "within 20 minutes of Rampart" and "not on main street".

"Good morning, Kel," Dixie's warm voice caused him to look up.

"Well, good morning, Dix," he replied with a full smile.

"You're in a good mood," she noted. "Johnny at work last night?" He snorted.

"Nope, he was puttering around the domicile last night. Went on shift this morning," Brackett said, still smiling. He recalled the minor celebration about getting his insurance check. Johnny had broken out some party hats and horns leftover from a New Year's party. Joe and Dixie would scoff at the immature gesture.

He, on the other hand, was filled with warmth at the memory.

"What's with the list?" Joe Early asked as he came up to the pair.

"Oh, the insurance company settled and I got the check late yesterday," Kel explained. "So I can start looking for a house!"

"A house?" Joe asked. "I thought you were a condo person. There's all that yard work to deal with."

"He's right, Kel," Dixie put in her two cents. "Houses are a lot of responsibility! Why be saddled with that?"

"I might have agreed with you before," the doctor said, "but after living at John's this past month I've come to appreciate no shared walls and the yard."

"I just can't picture you with a lawnmower," Joe shook his head.

"I actually have helped Johnny a couple times," Brackett said. "Anyway, there are lawn services I can hire to do the bulk of the work."

"A house, eh?" Dixie considered. "Maybe Joe and I can help you."

"I'd like that!" Kel enthused. "John said I should show you houses I liked."

"John said, John said," Morton parroted as he walked up to the ER desk. "I think you're getting a little too much into the guy." They all chuckled.

"No, just have a little more in common with him," Brackett admitted. "I'm benefitting from his unfortunate experiences a couple years ago."

"Well, I don't envy you looking for a house," Mike said. "The market is pretty rough for buyers from what I've read."

"Hey, no fears!" Joe smiled. "He has me and Dix helping!"

"Rampart, this is squad 36," a voice came over the speaker.

"Duty calls," Kel said and turned to the communications' room.

The day was busy from that first call-in. Lunch never happened and it was well past dinnertime when the exhausted doctor finally headed home.

"Hey, Chinese?" Dixie called after him.

"Your place or mine?" Kel asked.

"Mine," she replied. "I'll call and you pick up."

"Sounds good," he said, "order hot and sour soup." She gave a wave and picked up the phone.

When Gage got home he noted his room mate was not home. Tossing his things in his basket he simply walked into the front room and sat down on the couch, rubbing his face. How many runs? 10? 15? 100? There had been no time for sleep last night. As soon as they transported a patient another call came. Before he knew it he was asleep.

Running late, Kel rushed into the house and went straight to his room. Clothes went flying as he redressed for work. Not for the first time did he wish he would leave clothes at Dixie's.

Ok, actually, it should be 'could' as Dixie completely controlled any incursions into her privacy.

As he started for the front door he noted John asleep on the couch. Always the doctor he gave the slumbering man a quick once over. He could tell from the dark marks under the eyes the paramedic was exhausted. Bracket pulled off shoes, carefully repositioned the sleeping man so he was fully lying down and covered him with the colorful throw. A pat to the shoulder and he sped off to work.

Several back to back busy days for the doctor pushed all thoughts of house hunting from his mind. He was just holding on for Saturday when he'd begin his weekend.

"Hey, Doc," he looked up from his charting and saw Roy Desoto. Johnny had brought in a cardiac patient and was currently in treatment room 4 with Joe Early.

"Hello, Roy," he smiled. "John's still in with the patient."

"Yeah, kind of figured he would be," DeSoto said. "Anyway, Joanne and I are having Easter brunch at our house and wanted to invite you." Kel looked up, surprised. He figured Easter would be like any other Sunday.

"We do a potluck," Roy explained. "Since you've already survived the kids once, we figured you might like chancing it again."

"I'd, I'd be honored, Roy," Brackett finally answered. He got a crooked smile reminiscent of Gage.

"Maybe not," DeSoto teased. "You know that the crew will be there, three hyper kids searching for eggs in the yard. Two discontent teenagers, one of which will try to con Johnny into a run."

"Which he will go on," Kel deadpanned. "Come back all sweaty."

"Although he'll shower so that he doesn't upset Jo," Roy tagged on.

"What can I bring?" he asked.

"Hmmm, that's JoAnn's part," he said. "Here my number," he scratched his phone number on a piece of paper. Johnny chose that moment to come out of the room.

"Hi, Doc," he said amiably.

"Hi, looks like you're already busy," he said.

"No rest for the wicked," Gage replied. "Ready, Pally?" Roy nodded and they were off.

Kel waited until lunch to call JoAnne. She was very friendly and polite. He offered salad and she countered with baked beans. He agreed and then realized that it really was an easy thing to potluck.

"Feel free to come early with Johnny," she said. "He helps set up and keeps Roy from destroying the backyard."

"Why does he want to destroy the yard?" he asked curiously.

"He's a bundle of nerves just before a party for some reason," JoAnne replied. "He'll drive me nuts in the house and then go outside to 'clean up' the yard. Johnny comes early to help mostly by distracting him."

"He's a good distraction," Kel chuckled.

"Oh, before I forget!" she said, "if Dr. Early or Dixie want to come, feel free to drag them along."

"I will," Kel said. After good-byes, he hung up and went back to eating his lunch.

Saturday morning found Kel sipping coffee and looking over the real estate ads. Johnny had previewed them before he left for work and circled half a dozen. He added a few of his own and noted showing times. He knew he'd never get to all of them, but it was a start.

A knock at the door broke his concentration. Joe and Dixie came in and more coffee was poured.

"You still going house hunting?" Dixie asked.

"Yep!" Kell waved his newspaper. "Already found some places I want to check out."

"I found the perfect place for you!" Joe declared. I ran into a buddy of mine after work. He said a home opened up in his neighborhood. It's showing this morning." Kel smiled.

"Great! You read my wish list?" he offered the paper to Joe. He glanced over it and grinned.

"Got it covered!" the older doctor said.

The trio started off and looked at two houses that were near the hospital. Both were nice, but neither really sparked Kel's interest.

Following Joe's directions, they set off for the home he'd heard of. As they went further down the freeway, further and further away from the hospital, Kel wondered about commute time.

"Just where is this place?" he asked.

"Down in Long Beach at a marina," Joe said.

"Kind of a far commute," he muttered.

"Yeah, but I tell you, Kel, it's perfect for you!" Early enthused. They got off the freeway and headed down Pacific Coast Highway. Following the directions Brackett turned off the heavily traveled roadway and went into a gated condo community on the marina.

Ok, already blew away three things on the list! Two of them absolute necessary items. He grumpily climbed out of his car and followed his friends into the office. A smiling woman was happy to take them over to the 1-bedroom studio (Kel crossed another item off his list).

They wound around a warren of parking spaces and ended up in a building nearly surrounded by water and boats. He could still hear the traffic out on the highway and added to that was the boisterous noise of people out on boats. He could hear competing radios blaring out their various beats and voices. More cross-outs on the list!

With a grand flourish the saleswoman threw open the door and ushered them into a high-ceilinged room with floor to ceiling windows overlooking the marina, an upscale shopping center, and the oil derricks beyond. Joe was absolutely enthralled as he looked into every nook and cranny. There weren't many! A fairly large bedroom with bath attached. Then the main studio with kitchen at the opposite end. Large, bright canvasses covered the main wall, haphazardly positioned so there was no rhyme or reason to the display. A baby grand piano was dramatically showcased in one area.

"You could get some long, leather couches," Dixie said. "A few scatter rugs here and there."

"My friend lives down the hall," Joe said. "You'd always have a party to go to!"

"There isn't one thing here that is on my list, Joe!" Kel finally exclaimed.

"Oh, toss the list, Kel!" Early waved his hand. "That was Gage's list, not yours! You're not a house-owner type! You're a single guy looking for fun."

"Joe's right, Kel," Dixie said. "I just can't picture you in a house in the middle of suburbia. You need bright lights and lots of things happening around you."

"I know you're just trying to help," Brackett ground his teeth. "But I was getting tired of all the noise around my old place. The shared walls and shared common areas."

"But look at the view!" Joe said.

"The artwork and piano go with the condo, if you want them," the saleslady said helpfully.

"See? Perfect!" Dixie said. "You don't have to worry about decorating. Just buy some furniture."

"It's nearly an hour drive to Rampart," Kel said. "IF there's no traffic."

"Hey, a small sacrifice given the location." Early said. "Look, you can walk over the private bridge to Marina Pacifica. There are some class restaurants over there." Kel rubbed the bridge of his nose where a headache was forming.

"Joe, this place is perfect for you!" he said. "You should buy it and be near your friend."

"Naw, don't have much of a down payment," he said. "And I couldn't steal it from you."

"I'm sorry," Brackett gave the saleswoman a pained smile. "I'm not interested." He turned and left.

Ten minutes later Dixie and Joe found him sitting in the car.

"I think you'll regret it," Joe said. "It's perfect."

"No, Joe, I won't," he said. "Ready to go? There's still time to go see a couple more houses."

"Well, I'm ready to go, but not to go house hunting," Early said. "I'm kind of tired. Me and Dix were out pretty late last night."

"Then I'll head for Johnny's," he said, disappointed.

"We can go out looking again tomorrow," Dixie suggested.

"It's Easter, Dix, I doubt there'll be anything being shown," Kel pointed out.

"Oh, yeah," the nurse replied. "Hey, Joe and I were going out for brunch tomorrow. You want to join us?"

"No, that's ok," Brackett said, suddenly unwilling to invite them over to the DeSoto's home. He was realizing he was changing, for better or worse. He wanted a real house and home. Stability. More than you could get in a condo with a dozen or more other people. No association fees, no arguing over paint, roofing and landscaping.

They drove in strained silence up the freeway. They hit traffic and it took nearly 90 minutes to get to Johnny's house. Dixie and Joe took off. Kel entered the house and threw himself on the couch completely spent.

He'd started out so excited, he recalled Gage teasing him about getting all grown up and ready to leave home. Been pleased his friends had come to house hunt with him.

Fallen flat when those friends didn't really want to see what he said he wanted. He recognized the depression starting to well up. He knew if he stayed there he'd start crying. Grabbing his jacket he went to the one place he knew he'd feel better.

"Well, Dr. Brackett," Hank Stanley reached out a welcoming hand. "What brings you to our humble little station?"

"I was in the neighborhood," he managed. "Thought I'd inspect your coffee pot for bacteria."

"Sure, come on in," Cap smiled. "The guys are scattered about, but John and Roy are in the kitchen reading through some new training literature." He followed the doctor into the kitchen.

"Hey, Doc," a classic John Gage grin helped push out the dark depression that had been creeping up on him.

"Dr. Brackett," Roy added his own friendly smile.

"Doc is going to inspect our coffee," Hank said. "Surprise inspection, hope we pass!"

"Well, I just happened to start a fresh pot," Johnny said as he abandoned his reading material and went to pour out a mugful for his room mate. "Cap?"

"Sure, I'll take a cup," Stanley went to the cupboard and pulled out a ziplock of cookies Emily had made. Gage topped off Roy and his mug and returned to his paperwork.

"Hmm, it's hot," Kel teased.

"We cleaned the pot just last month," Roy deadpanned.

"What are you reading?" Kel asked. Soon the paramedics were discussing the latest curriculum changes in the training program. Some they agreed with, some they didn't. As two of the top paramedics in the county their knowledge and opinions were sought after.

Tones went off. "Squad 51, man down, 258 Artesia Boulevard. 2 - 5 - 8 Artesia Boulevard. Cross street, Paramount Boulevard. Time out, 14:50."

"Squad 51, KMG 365," Hank responded then handed the incident slip to Roy.

"Mind if I tag along?" Kel asked. The senior paramedic shrugged and let the doctor climb into the squad ahead of him.

The squad came alive with flashing lights and siren blaring. Brackett could feel his adrenaline kick into overdrive and once more realized just how stressful this line of work was. Every time they heard the tones or even a fire truck going past he was sure they felt the same surge. Might make an interesting study...

His train of thought was refocused as DeSoto peeled around a corner just a little too fast.

"Hey, Rutherford!" Johnny complained, "remember your little Indycart has a couple passengers!" Roy just grinned a toothy grin.

"He has aspirations of doing the 500," the younger paramedic said in an aside to Brackett.

"I'll remember that," Kel said as he shifted off of Johnny's side. "Wear a crash helmet next time." Gage took off his helmet and tucked it on the doctor's head, adjusting the chin strap.

"You just keep that on!" he admonished. The squad rolled on, although the turns were taken a bit slower so the g-force didn't send anyone flying. They saw a woman ahead waving to catch their attention.

"It's Jim!" she called out as they pulled out their equipment. "He was up on the roof fixing some shingles and he slipped. He's in a lot of pain!" She led them around the side of the house.

"Meredith? Meredith!" a crumpled body called out.

"I didn't move him," she said. "I didn't seem him land and don't know if he hurt his back."

"You did the right thing, Ma'am," Roy put a comforting hand on her shoulder as his partner and ride-along doctor knelt down to look at the patient.

"Get me vitals," Kel said tersely. Johnny was on it.

"I'll get the backboard," Roy said.

"Jim? Can you tell me what happened?" Brackett asked.

"Was.. on roof," he tried. "Then on... ground."

"Ok, what hurts?" he tried a different tact.

"Uh... leg, arm," he said. "Butt." Meredith giggled nervously. Which caused Jim to snicker a little.

"Jim, can you move your feet?" the doctor continued and was rewarded by the sight of moving feet, then hands.

"Good," he said. "We're going to roll you over on your back in a minute. Just let me and Johnny do all the work, ok?"

"Sure, my kind of job," Jim managed to tease. Roy returned with the backboard and shortly the injured man was on his back. Johnny relayed vitals and reached for the biophone. He repeated the information to Dr. Morton.

"Let me have the phone," Kel reached over while Roy rooted through the drug box gathering items to start an iv. The doctor conferred with his colleague and soon Jim was packaged to go on the newly arrived gurney. Gage and Brackett climbed into the back of the ambulance. Meredith elected to ride in the squad with DeSoto.

"Treatment room 2," Carol directed the gurney.

"Hi, Kel," Morton said as he rushed in behind them. Together they checked over the patient, ordering blood panels and x-rays. As they left the room the younger doctor looked at his boss strangely.

"So, how did you get involved? Neighbor of Gage?" he asked.

"No, actually I'd been out house hunting and stopped by Station 51," Kel said. "When they got the call I decided to ride along."

"Ok," Morton said slowly, "day off and you go play fire man."

"Guess so," Brackett said. "I'll see you Monday." He turned and followed the paramedics back to the squad.

The trip back was much calmer. Johnny managed to get the doctor talking about the homes he'd gone to see and the disastrous trip down to Long Beach.

"It was like they weren't even listening to me," Brackett said sadly. "It was a nice condo and all, perfect for Joe. But there wasn't one feature from my list in that place."

"I can understand your frustration," Roy said as he backed into the apparatus bay.

"Did you bring your paper?" Johnny asked. With a nod Brackett went out to his car and brought it in. Fresh coffee was poured out, cookies snagged, and soon the three men were looking at the offerings.

"Hey, here's the real estate ads from the Times," Mike offered as he came to the table to join the men. They shuffled through them and started circling prospective properties.

"Look, Doc," Johnny said. "Here are two places showing this afternoon. You could get over to both of 'em now!"

"Ok, I'll go take a look," he agreed.

"Soon as you get settled you'll just have to spend that betting pool," Mike grinned. This caused an even bigger smile to wreath the doctor's face.

"Yeah," he agreed. "The way it's going we'll have a bash!" Gathering up the papers Kel drained the last of the coffee from his mug. Johnny walked him out to his car and wished him luck. Feeling immensely better, he spun out of the parking lot.

"Someone else thinks he's Rutherford!" Gage grumbled under his breath.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

When Johnny arrived home the detritus of house hunting was all over the kitchen table. He glanced at the various flyers, looking at prices and such, then started the coffee pot.

Having showered at the station he decided on a quick breakfast and began assembling the ingredients for an omelette. He noted Kel Brackett wasn't quite awake as he stumbled into the kitchen. A cup of coffee was poured out and placed in sleepy hands.

Sitting at the table the doctor watched his room mate cook and plate breakfast. A portion was slipped in front of him with toast on a separate plate. Interested, he poked into the eggy, cheesy, goodness, cataloguing mushrooms and sliced hot dogs. A Gage special.

They ate in companionable silence. Kel finally woke up fully and turned a happy grin to Johnny.

"You spoil me," he commented as he speared more hot dogs and eggs.

"It all evens out," Gage smiled in return. "I like the nice dinners out."

"When are you heading over to Roy's?" Kel asked.

"In about an hour," he determined. "Just enough time for Roy to get kicked out into the backyard but not enough time for him to destroy the shrubberies."

"And your running partner?" Brackett inserted smoothly.

"Jake's being dropped off in about two hours. We'll take a half-hour run and be done in time to light the bar-b-cue," Johnny said.

"I think I'll go over with you," the doctor decided. "I made the beans last night. Joanne said she had a crock pot I could use to heat them up."

"Sounds good," Gage smile as he worked on his breakfast. He some eggs on his toast and crunched happily. Kel smirked, remembering the breakfast with the Desoto children.

"You forgot the applesauce," he pointed out. Johnny smiled.

"Consider it an Egg Mcmuffin without the sausage," he countered. "No styrofoam, either!" That gained a chuckle.

Nearly and hour and a half later the two men arrived at the Desoto's. Gage put his hanger of clean clothes on the door knob. He rang the bell then opened the door and was quickly attacked by two dynamos.

"UNCLE JOHNNY!" the children chorused. He swung them in a tight circle then moved aside so that Kel could carry his dish into the house.

"Hi Johnny! Hi Kel!" Joanne greeted them, remembering Brackett's admonition to use his first name. "Something smells good!" Gage gave her a quick peck on the cheek. Reaching around the squiggling mass of bodies she plucked the clothing off the front door.

"Good morning, Joanne," Brackett smiled warmly. He followed her into the kitchen.

"Here's the crock pot," she told him. Using one of her wooden spoons he scooped the beans into it. Then the element was turned on high to get them warmed up.

"Thanks," Kel said. "Do you need any help?"

"Nope," she replied. "Everything's lined up and ready to go in here. Maybe you should help Roy out in the yard." She showed him out the back sliding door onto the wooden deck. From this vantage point both of them watched as Johnny man-handled Roy off his ladder and swung him down to the ground. The two children scrambled on top of their father, tickling him.

"Yeesh, that always scares me a little, even though I know Johnny's more than strong enough to pick Roy up," Joanne shuddered slightly.

"I just hope he never gets it into his head to do that to me!" Kel declared.

"Don't climb a ladder around him," she counseled. She headed back into the house leaving the doctor to decide how to enter the back yard the rest of the way.

Fortunately there was no more tossing Roy around, and by extension, no tossing Kel. The three men picked up all the clippings and put away the gardening tools. Then they started setting out chairs and a few folding tables.

Followed by a series of mad dashes after the children to get the table cloths fastened down. Johnny was very good at letting Chris and Jenny snatch one end and run off playing 'Superman'. Kel had never played with children before staying with John, and it was safe to say this was the first time he enjoyed chasing, lifting up, and tossing a child to another adult.

Getting the cloths on finally, the sliding door opened and out came Jake dressed for a run. He grinned as he greeted the adults, then the two kids. With a jerk of his head he pulled John out of the yard and soon they were off running.

"Well, I've done enough," Roy said as he collapsed on a lounge chair.

"I never knew just how tiring setting up tables could be!" Kel agreed as he took a chair next to him.

"Doing most anything with Johnny and the kids is tiring!" Roy snickered. "He has a way about him to make just about anything routine fun." Brackett recalled the party favors when his insurance check came.

"Yeah, he does, doesn't he?" Kel said and then told the paramedic what had happened. Roy just grinned and shook his head.

"You two looked tuckered out!" Joanne commented as she carried a pitcher of iced tea to them complete with plastic cups. She poured out three cups and joined her husband on his lounge. As the children continued playing they talked.

Kel Brackett was enjoying himself! Without alcohol or at an adult party with his friends. No need to keep the dignified calm of a top-notch doctor. He reflected that he was changing. He still enjoyed going out with Joe and Dixie, but he also found the family activities just as much fun. Better in that it didn't include the stress of his relationship, or lack there of, with Dixie.

Nearly an hour later the runners returned. Jake showered first and Johnny sat on the edge of the deck. He was drenched in sweat, sipping at a tall glass of water.

"Where did you go?" Roy asked. "You were gone well over a half-hour."

"Eh, Jake thought he could lose me," Johnny said. "He rabbited."

"Like I could escape you!" the teenage boy came out clean and wearing better clothing for the gathering.

"You leave me some hot water?" came the reply, complete with smirk.

"Yeah, plenty," Jake said. Taking his glass with him Johnny bounded into the house.

"Man, I'l never beat him!" Jake muttered to himself.

"You've gotten faster since you've started training with him," Roy pointed out. "You'll do it! Johnny's just gonna make sure you beat him in a fair race. He'll never 'let' you win."

"He better not!" Jake growled. "I want to beat him fair and square."

"You will," Joanne put in. "When did your dad say he'd be here?"

"Now," a voice came out from the sliding door. Hank walked out with Ruthie and Emily. "John let us in."

"I put our food in the kitchen," Emily said. More tea was poured as they joined the loungers. Jenny and Chris wandered over and sidled up to the two teenagers. Conversation revolved around the children for the moment, boy scouts, kindergarden, track and the latest boy bands were discussed.

The door slid open again letting in the Stokers. Becky immediately ran for Jenny while the adults shook hands with their friends.

"Marco and Chet are here, they're going to bring the coolers back through the side yard," Beth reported.

"Well, we best get inside and get the food together," Emily said. The women, excluding Ruthie, went into the kitchen.

"So where's John?" Chet asked as he huffed around the corner of the house followed by Marco on the other end of a heavy cooler.

"I still say it'd be easier to carry these in first then add the ice and soda!" the swarthy fireman whined.

"Yeah, yeah," Chet sassed back. "And then everything would be warm. Warm beer... Yuck!" They hoisted the cooler on the edge of the deck near the bar-b-cue.

"One down, two to go!" Marco said with a groan.

"We'll help," Roy nodded towards Hank leaving Mike to sit with Brackett. The kids continued chattering with the teens.

"I see you didn't offer," Kel teased Mike. The engineer gave him one of his slow smiles.

"I know how Chet packs," he replied. "And I don't want to require one of your special hernia packages at Rampart." This caused Kel to snort.

"I will remember that!" the doctor promised. "Did Becky get a nice visit from the Easter Bunny?" The prompt launched a normally quiet man into verbosity. When the young girl heard her daddy telling the strange man about her basket she shyly came over and showed off her new stuffed bunny.

Accepting the lop-eared creature for inspection Kel praised the beauty of the fur and large pink bow. Handing it back his heart melted a little when she leaned against her father and gave him the same smile Mike had. Their blue eyes sparkling. His moment of revelry was broken when a hand touched his shoulder and Gage sat on the grass beside his chair.

"See you've met Becky," he said as he grinned at the little girl. "Hi, Becky," he turned his attention on her. "Oooh, the Easter Bunny left you a nice present!" Kel watched as the shyness dropped from her face and she bounced to the younger paramedic's arms for a hug and a cuddle. She let him see her bunny and accepted his admiration.

"Johnny has a way with beautiful women," Brackett remarked to Mike.

"Yeah, he certainly does!" Mike replied, his face still wreathed in a warm smile.

"Maybe you can play with Jenny," Gage was saying. "I think she got a nice bunny, too!" Taking the bunny the little girl skipped off to play with her friends.

"I'm up for a beer," Johnny said, "after that run! Anyone else?" Mike and Kel both nodded in agreement. Leveraging himself up he moved over to the cooler, pulled it open and selected three bottles. Lids dispatched he returned to his friends.

As he resumed his lounging the next two coolers arrived.

"Geeze, Kelly, what did you put in this," Stanley complained. "Rocks?"

"I think they're lead lined," Desoto chimed in huffing behind his captain.

"I told you they were heavy!" Lopez whined as the last chest was tossed up on the deck.

"You are the three biggest weaklings I've ever met!" Chet snapped. "Can't lift a little ice chest..." Opening the first chest he pulled out beers and passed them around. With grumbles these were accepted as peace offerings and opened.

Kel listened to the banter among the men and grinned. They were so funny together! He could tell they cared a great deal about one another even though they didn't do the touchy-feely things women engaged in.

As he sipped at his bottle he was hit by a bolt of lightening. He was now a part of this family. Glancing to his right he looked down at his room mate. A man, who up to six weeks ago, he thought was immature and irresponsible, hot-headed and reckless. Who had become integral to his getting through the loss of his home. Who had brought him into this family.

He wiped at his nose trying to stop any tears from forming. Damn emotions!

"Hey, Doc," Mike caught the unguarded look of being overwhelmed. "We should get the eggs hidden for the Easter egg hunt!"

"What?" Kel shook his head trying to focus.

"Hide the Easter eggs, Doc," Johnny nudged his leg. "My job is to entertain the kids while you adults have some fun." Unfolding his long legs he stretched, reminiscent of a large cat. Popped to his feet and headed off towards the group of children and teens.

"Come on, Doc, allow me to initiate you into the Easter Egg Society," Mike held out a hand and pulled him up.

Once more Brackett found himself engaged in an activity he'd never been involved in before. As a child there'd been a basket at the end of his bed until he was seven. Then he was told about the bunny, as well as the tooth fairy and Santa Claus. Oh, they still celebrated the holidays, and there were still chocolate bunnies and Santa gifts, but the magic and mystery had been removed so that he could 'grow up'. He had a few cousins, none younger than him, but his family never did the Easter festivities that these people were engaged in.

He was handed a basket of eggs, all colorfully dyed. These were placed in obvious places for Becky and Jenny. Mike hid some of the eggs in less obvious places along with Marco. Chet was relegated to hiding plastic eggs in very difficult to get to places, just for the teens.

Roy had lit the coals; the smell wafted through the air promising good food to come. Kel could hear the delighted laughter of the children coming from the house. Emily and Beth were putting chips and appetizers on one of the tables.

He'd been to this house several times before for parties and bar-b-cues. Been to the Stanley's as well. But he'd always been Dr. Brackett before. Accompanied by Dixie and usually Joe. Never stepped over the professional line between fire department and Rampart ER.

Now he was 'Kel' to them. Well, Johnny still called him 'Doc' as well as Roy, but that was actually said in a warm, friendly tone not with the professional edge he'd heard when others called him that. Again, he felt the emotions swirling inside his chest and he decided he'd better distract himself. Setting down the last egg he headed for the house.

Here he found the women in the dining room watching the children decorate their baskets with ribbons. Johnny was decorated as well, a few strategically placed ribbons around his arm as well as an Easter bunny sticker on his face. He was wrapping a bright spring green ribbon around Becky's waist and carefully tying it.

Sidling up next to Joanne he folded his arms as a smile threatened at the corners of his mouth.

"You are getting pictures of this?" he whispered.

"Of course! That way it takes all the blackmail possibilities away from Chet 'cause we'll share them with all the other women," Joanne said.

"And then those women will try to prove their men are just as wonderful with their children," Emily said as she stood beside him.

"You should have seen the Christmas pictures," Beth snickered. "Chet didn't stand a chance at blackmail after Uncle Johnny helped assemble a bike in the middle of the night with Roy."

"You took pictures of Mike in his jammies putting together a tricycle," Joanne chortled.

"I never knew you were so... competitive," Kel said.

"Well, we need to have fun, too!" Emily stated firmly.

"Of course," Kel agreed quickly, wondering if he'd had any compromising pictures taken.

"Hey, kids?" Chet's voice floated in. "I think I just saw a funny-looking rabbit run through the yard!"

"YEAH!" Becky and Jenny screamed. Chris looked excited, but he refrained from acting out. Jake and Ruth just picked up their baskets.

"Bet I find more," Jake challenged his sister.

"Bet you don't!" she replied. "There are 15 of 'em." The kids rushed out followed more sedately by the other adults. Brackett wandered over to the grill, where Johnny was manning the coals, to watch the kids.

"Love what you've done with your ribbons," he teased the paramedic.

"I saved this one just for you," Johnny said, tying a particularly bright blue one on his friend's upper arm. "This allows you to eat chocolate eggs and bunnies."

"In that case, I'll keep it," Kel said. He sat down on the decking by his friend and watched as the kids, and teenagers, ran around the yard finding eggs.

"I hope you like egg salad sandwiches," Gage commented as Becky picked up another brightly dyed offering.

"Yep, always have," Kel agreed. Together they watched all the children, and various parents, collect eggs. It was fun, especially the competition between Ruthie and Jake. The teenagers were up trees and under the decking scouting out their personal eggs.

"Emily and Cap put money in some of the plastic eggs," he explained. "Last year Jenny found one and was upset that it had a five dollar bill." They shared a laugh as Jake stuck out his tongue at his sister.

"Eight! I go-ot more!" he sing-songed.

"Maybe you got more eggs, but I bet I got more money!" Ruthie shot back. They sat cross-legged on the grass near their parents as they popped open the plastic eggs. Kel could see some money as well as white slips of paper fall out of them.

"Beware Rabbits Bearing Eggs!" Jake read. He rolled his eyes. "Geeze, Dad! That one's really bad." Hank grinned.

"Who said it was me?" he teased back. "There was this long-eared fellow who visited last night." Another dramatic teenaged set of eyes rolled.

"Don't eat Brown Eggs," read Ruth. "Da-ad! That's just gross!" Emily pretended to look indignant.

"Dad? Don't you think I might have come up with some?" she grouched. Both teens shook their heads.

"Guess I need to work on that," she smiled as she snuggled up against her husband looking for a quick kiss.

"MO-OM!" both teens chorused. "EWW!" This caused the adults to act even more mushy gaining a few cat-calls from their friends.

Money was counted, a few more silly strips of paper read, and the finally tally Jake had one more egg and Ruthie had three more dollars. Each had bragging rights.

"I'm going to get the meat," Johnny told Kel and was off to the kitchen. Soon a variety of hamburgers, chicken and steaks adorned the large grill. Roy came back from an exciting egg hunt to cook. He accepted a tall glass of iced tea from Joanne who gave glasses to Kel and Johnny as well.

For the next hour pleasant conversation, punctuated by the laughter and shouts of happy children, ensued. As the meat was done it was placed in an aluminum tray to keep warm. Finally, everything was cooked and the call rang out for supper.

One table nearest the door was loaded with side dishes. Johnny, with Jenny glued to his side, went through the line putting food on two plates. Kel noted the teenagers were right behind him as well as Chris.

"Johnny's gonna sit at the kid's table again!" Chet exclaimed. "Exactly where he belongs!"

"Don't be mean to Uncle Johnny!" Chris was quick to defend.

"Ooh, and he has a protector!" Chet added.

"More than one, Chet," Jake shot back with a mock-glare. The fireman pretended to be afraid, but the effect was spoiled when he laughed.

"He's just jealous," Johnny said to his 'entourage'. "I have the best seat in the yard!" Kel decided he'd join his house mate. As he filled his own plate he noted the kids did sit at one table, Jenny on Johnny's lap. Even Becky toddled over and allowed Ruthie to hold her as she ate the finger foods her Mommy had assembled.

As the afternoon deepened most of the food disappeared as well as the drinks from the coolers. Dessert was offered, from cookies and brownies to a brightly iced Easter cake.

Chet and Marco left first, having their own family dinners to attend. They were shortly followed by the Stokers, Becky in Daddy's arms asleep. Jake and Johnny started to clean up, a second round of "Superman" was played. Ruthie managed to tie one of the cloths around her shoulders and did a pretty good rendition of 'Super Woman' as she sailed around the yard chased by the rest of the kids.

Kel helped Roy drain the coolers. All the leftover drinks were put into one cooler with the last of the ice. Snagging another beer the two men sat on the edge of the decking to watch the kids, and Johnny, clean up the yard. Hank ambled over and joined them.

"Those two are never willing to clean up anything!" Hank shook his head in wonder. "But when they're with John, they can't help enough."

"It looks like a game," Kel observed. "How can he make cleaning up trash fun?"

"I don't know," Roy said. "But I'm not gonna knock it! I don't have to do it, that's all that matters to me!" The three men chuckled as they watched the last of the plates and cups get slam-dunked into the waiting trash can. Tables and chairs were disassembled and put back into the garage. Then the intrepid clean-up crew snagged drinks out of the cooler and flopped down on the grass next to the three men.

"Done and done!" Johnny said as he took a quenching swallow of beer. Jennifer sidled over and climbed up on his reclining body looking for a nap. Ruthie managed to get her head pillowed on part of Johnny's stomach and Jake pretended to plump up her stomach before utilizing her as a pillow. This left Chris to curl up in the hollow created by the teenagers and the paramedic.

"Well, I suppose you people are comfy?" Johnny said dryly, finding himself completely trapped by the resting bodies. A chorus of content voices answered in the affirmative. Rolling his eyes he moved the half-full bottle of beer to a safer place, put one arm around Jenny, the other thrown over his eyes, and gave into the group nap.

A peaceful lassitude descended. Emily and Joanne came out having finished divvying up the leftovers and joined them. Kel was amused when a soft snore rose up from Hank. The lanky captain had managed to fall asleep against Roy, using his leg as a pillow.

"Hope he doesn't drool," Emily softly snickered. Johnny lifted his hand slightly to see which adult had succumb to sleep. He gave a crooked grin when he saw Hank down for the count. A camera came out and a few pictures taken.

"You'll win for sure," Joanne told Emily.

"I don't know, that little clump of critters is pretty cute as well," she aimed her camera at the kids on the grass.

"I want copies," Kel said. "I need to rebuild my photo album!"

"That reminds me," Joanne said as she swiped a pull of beer from her husband's bottle. "I have something for you." She went into the house and returned with a book, and some foil-wrapped chocolate eggs in a small basket.

"Jenny and Chris figured you might not get a basket this morning and they wanted you to have some of theirs," she explained. "These are some pictures we found from past get togethers you went to." she handed the album to him.

"You... you put together an album for me?" he was stunned.

"Emily and I knew you'd lost everything, Kel," she said gently. "We did this for Johnny several years ago. A starting place for your memories." Brackett was speechless. He flipped through pages of pictures of himself and all his friends. There were shots he knew Johnny had taken when he was chronicling several paramedic runs for the department.

"If you want we can help write to your friends and family and start collecting your family pictures," Emily added. Kel felt the tears prickling at the corners of his eyes.

"These are family pictures," he said thickly as a few tears started down his cheek. Roy placed a comforting hand in the middle of his back as he continued to look at the album.

Yes, Kel was among family.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Monday morning arrived with a well-rested Kel Brackett glancing over a mound of paper on his desk. Plenty to keep him busy but not enough to be daunting. He looked at the deep blue photo album on the side of his desk and smiled. Joanne Desoto was a wonderful person!

There was a tap at the door and Dixie popped her head in.

"Good morning, Dix!" he greeted her affectionately.

"Morning, Kel," she returned the smile. "Joe and I tried to get ahold of you yesterday."

"I was over at the Desotos," he explained. "They had a bar-b-cue."

"Ah, sounds like fun," she said dubiously. "Kids and all."

"Yeah, with the requisite egg hunt," Kel chuckled. "It was fun!"

"Good, good," Dixie was skeptical, but accepted the statement. "We went out to the Three Crowns in Newport Beach. Great brunch. Met up with a couple of Joe's music friends and ended up clubbing after."

"Bet you heard some great music!" Kel enthused. "Joe's friends are a talented bunch. Sorry I missed it."

"I'm sorry, too," she gave him a coy grin. "Of course, you'd not be so well rested. We were out past 1!" she stifled a yawn. Brackett chuckled.

"I'll say this, I get more sleep when I hang out with Johnny, that's for sure!" he said. "You and Joe are the bad influence!"

The phone rang, Kel picked it up and his face turned serious. Hanging up he stood and pulled on his white jacket.

"We have a MVA coming in," he said. "Let's go!"

The next several hours were a blur as one ambulance after another came in bearing a variety of injured people. There had been a chain-reaction crash on the 405 that included a dozen cars and three semis pulling their heavy loads into the city. Paramedics had done the initial triage in the field, sending in the worst injuries first.

Kel had already sent three victims up to surgery, and one down to the morgue. He knew that Joe had roughly the same number of patients. It was well past lunch when they'd finally caught up.

"Oh man," Dr. Early leaned on the counter. "I thought I was tired before!" He tried to shift his shoulders and relieve the pain in his back. Brackett came up behind him.

"Back?" he asked tersely.

"Yeah," Joe replied.

"You know the drill," Kel said as he moved his friend slightly and began running his hands around his back determining where the muscles were taut. Locating the worst area he began kneading working out the strain. After a few minutes, and more than a few stares, the elder doctor stretched.

"That got it," he said. "Thanks, Kel!"

"Well, these are the magic hands," Bracket said smugly.

"Oh, they're magic, alright," Dixie smiled bemused by their interplay. Joe looked askance at her.

"And you'd know this how?" he attempted to nail her with a serious look.

"He's worked out stiffness issues with me before," she shot back with her own smirk.

"And on that note, my dear colleagues," Kel turned. "I am off to the cafeteria. Breakfast was a long time ago!" He beat a hasty retreat before the conversation became even more 'sprightly'.

The week continued much the same way, few lull periods liberally interspersed with critical trauma cases. Just when they thought they'd had caught up another load was wheeled in. By Friday all Brackett wanted to do was curl up on the couch and do absolutely nothing. Even Dixie was too tired to consider going to get something to eat.

So the doctor managed to drive himself home and let himself in. Gage was reading at the kitchen table over a bowl of ice cream.

"Hey, Doc," he said. "Some chicken and stuff in the fridge."

"I think I'm too tired," Kel muttered. Now Johnny took a good look and immediately stood and parked the doctor at the table. First a drink managed to find its way to the man. Then a plate of nibbles, cheese and salami the doctor had bought.

While he munched a pot was heated on the stove with chicken and gravy. Soon a warm meal was slid in front of him and he attacked the food as if he hadn't eaten in days.

It certainly seemed like that to his stomach! Johnny returned to his book and sipped at a fresh glass of milk. The doctor appreciated the silence. And the food.

After what seemed to be an eternity, Kel blinked sleepily and considered the empty plate. Before he could make any decisions he was encouraged to stand up then propelled down the hall into his bathroom. He'd barely had the time to ponder the move when his PJs were handed over.

"Change, Kel," a voice directed. "Teeth, toilet, and bed!" The door closed and he found himself following the firm orders. He was in bed a few minutes later with the covers magically being pulled up and over him.

The next morning (very late morning!) he woke to peace and quiet. Gage was on a 24 and had left much earlier. As he lie there stretching stiff muscles he recalled dinner appearing in front of him and then tumbling into bed.

He wondered briefly at being taken care of. It felt... good... but it also was a little disorienting. Since he'd grown up and moved away from home no one had really done that for him. Even when he'd been sick, really sick with the monkey flu, he'd recuperated in the hospital and then mostly by himself at home. Dixie had stopped by or Joe often enough, but he'd taken care of his own needs.

Brackett recalled that Johnny had stayed with the Desotos for nearly two weeks. Oh, Kel had gone back to work sooner, but as he thought on it John was completely recuperated when he came back.

Maybe total self-reliance wasn't as good as he'd thought it was. He could have asked Dixie for more 'help' and she'd have been there for him. Probably. It was just sometimes she seemed to totally distance herself and declare that he was being too 'needy'.

He couldn't recall being 'needy'.

Too much to consider! He got up and started his weekend.

By the time Johnny pulled in Sunday morning Kel was long gone, out house hunting. The paramedic ate breakfast with Roy and his family. They'd gone off to church and he came home to clean and rest. After tossing his pocket stuff into his basket he glanced into the front room.

Hmmm, that couch looked pretty darned inviting! He kicked off his shoes and settled back, pulling the throw over him. Within minutes he had relaxed into sleep.

The lazy morning stretched to noontime and a little beyond. Kel returned home and sought out his friend. Spying him on the couch he suppressed a chuckle and tugged off the throw. This did not disturb the man at all as he slept on in peaceful lassitude. Another attack was necessary.

"51, start an IV, D5W, and 5ccs of MS. Send a strip lead two!" he softly order from just behind Johnny's head.

"It has to Brackett," Johnny mumbled. "Always D5W." He shifted on the couch, rolling onto his side and settling back down.

"Johnny," he said a little louder, "who orders normal saline?"

"Morton," he grumbled. "Morton does for hang nails." This caused Kel to laugh a loud, finishing the waking process.

"Hey Doc," Gage opened sleepy eyes. "When'd you get home?"

"About now," he answered. "You doing anything?"

"Uh, napping?" came the reply. "But someone stole my blanket."

"Guilty as charged," Kel smirked. "You want to see a house?"

"You find one?" came the more awake question.

"Yep! It's perfect!" Brackett enthused. The paramedic slowly sat up and pulled on his shoes, tying laces.

"Be ready in a couple," he stifled a yawn and headed down the hall. Soon he was assembled and tucked his wallet and keys into appropriate pockets. He then followed the bouncing doctor out to the car.

"It's perfect!" Kel burst out. "Three bedrooms, huge kitchen, great yard and only fifteen minutes from Rampart!"

"Sounds great," Johnny grinned, mostly at the animation.

"I saw it yesterday and wanted to show Dixie or Joe," he explained. "But she's out with some girlfriends and Joe's over at his friend's jamming."

"So that leaves the sleeping paramedic!" he teased. Kel just grinned even more.

"Never let sleeping paramedics lie..." he paraphrased, earning a snort.

After winding around an older, established neighborhood Brackett pulled up in front of a single-story house, freshly painted and the yard nicely trimmed. There were relator flags planted on the lawn proclaiming an open house. Johnny could see why it appealed to his friend - it looked ready to move in to.

Getting out of the car he followed the eager doctor up the stone walk and into the house. The agent was busy with another couple and gave a nod and friendly hello. Kel showed the house to his friend and was not disappointed. Johnny was impressed with the layout and the spacious rooms. The kitchen was newly remodeled with matching appliances.

"It's great, Kel!" John said as they moved back to the sunny front room. He picked up a listing sheet and checked out the price. Within Doc's range.

"Going to put an offer in?" he asked.

"Yeah, I think I am," Bracket replied. They sat down to wait for the agent. They discussed 'strategy', how much to offer based on the asking price. Of course, Johnny suggested they talk with agent to see what offers may have already been made.

When the agent was finally free Kel was disappointed to find that two other offers had been made on the house. He looked at the offers, mentally checked his price range and offered an additional three thousand dollars which pleased the agent. The more offered, the bigger his cut! With a promise to let him know if anyone countered his offer Kel collected the agent's personal business card and left with his friend once more in tow.

That friend's stomach made itself known immediately upon settling into the car.

"Uh, think we can head on back home?" he asked.

"We can run through somewhere," Kel said. This caused a slight blush.

"Um, nah," Gage said. "Got stuff at home." The doctor considered offering to pay, but decided not to push him.

"Ok, the Gage estate!" he said and turned the car towards home.


	9. Chapter 9

The Other Side 9

Monday found Brackett back at Rampart sitting at his desk attempting to finish up his latest round of budget reports. The latest idea from the accounting department was to try a central supply.

Again.

The last time had been a nightmare. The paramedics were only given half to three-quarters of their orders and anything ER needed had to have his signature on it, from sutures to antibacterial wipes. He had gone crazy signing form after form. It had fallen apart within the first two week when both the paramedic teams and ER ran out of necessary supplies because orders were trimmed according to 'budgetary practices".

This time the medication was located with the pharmacy. Anything from drops to drips to pills to infusions came out of the central pharmacy or the auxiliary in ER. Medical supplies came from, brace yourself, supply. So IV tubing, sutures, needles, catheters, all that stuff, was ordered from there. Finally, bedding, scrubs, towels, et al, came from laundry.

The paramedics only had to go to the ER nurse's station for resupply. Yes, there was now a form, but it wasn't the 5-copy nightmare as before. Only the paramedic had to sign it and the staff member who filled it.

But still, it was paperwork. The bane of his existence. He noted a line item that seemed off, twice as many 'small' scrubs had been used than any other size. So he made a notation that he would check on that with the ER head nurse. That should make the damned pencil pushers happy!

Tossing down his pen he picked up his coffee and winced as he took a sip. It was ice cold. Hospital coffee was bad enough hot! Not for the first time he wished he could bring in a pot of Gage's coffee. That thought was pushed aside as well. Now that they were coming to the end of month three of the ongoing betting pool had cooled somewhat but another form of teasing had begun.

It had been Morton who'd made a comment about 'the little missus' when he'd overheard Kel asking John to pick up his dry cleaning. That Johnny had been going to pick up his own and had offered was dismissed as irrelevant. Joe Early had laughed a little longer than Kel deemed appropriate and he was only glad that Johnny himself hadn't heard any of it.

The ER was a small village unto itself and gossip flew around swiftly. Which meant Dixie joined in with her own side comments any time Gage's name was brought up in context with their residence. That made the passed couple weeks a bit stressful for him. But he worked hard not to react as they wanted. There was a knock at the open door.

"Kel, we have multiple MVA injuries coming in," Dixie said. "Joe says it's going to be bad." Leaving the cold coffee and papers he pulled on his white coat and headed down the hall. Nurses and attendants were preparing three different treatment rooms and he knew that the OR was already on alert. For all the gossip the ER team knew their jobs and performed above and beyond expectations.

"There are three critical," Early was explaining to Morton. One has a serious head wound. I'll take that. The other two have multiple broken bones and internal injuries. I'd like you to take the first one and Kel, you should take the other as it's an eight year old child." He didn't have to explain that the head of ER had more experience thus increasing the chance for survival and Morton didn't take any offense. Agreeing the three men tensely waited.

When the first gurney came rushing in Craig Brice was jogging along side and began filling Mike in on the latest vitals. The young doctor and walking rule book disappeared into a room.

Next it was the 51s with Roy Desoto and the head injury. Joe Early latched on to that one and was ordering x-rays even before they got into a room. Which left the third critical to Kel. He didn't have long to wait when John Gage came in holding the hand of a boy trying to keep his attention.

"Hey, Justin, look! Didn't I say you'd get a great doctor?" the boy dazedly looked up at Bracket.

"Hi, Justin," Kel smiled. The boy's attention turned back to Johnny.

"You, you're going to stay?" he asked fearfully.

"Of course! I'll be with you and I know your mom will be here soon," he said gently, never releasing the small hand. They slid into treatment room four along with Sharon and soon Bracket was looking over a very broken body. Although there was no head injury only small a dose of morphine had been given. The trauma was such they didn't want to create more problems with heavy sedation.

So Kel added a few cc's more of morphine and began his exam as Johnny continued to keep the boy focused on him as much as possible. It was quite apparent that the child's upper left leg was snapped and the pelvis probably as well. Bruises just starting along the left rib cage indicated more damage. There was a definite bruising along the left shoulder down to the right hip from the seat belt. X-ray was called in as another micro dose of pain meds was given. When the tech arrived the boy became agitated.

"I'm gonna be here, Justin," Johnny crooned. "I have to step out each time he takes the picture, but then I'll come right back in to help you move, 'k?" Large, wet brown eyes met the paramedic's and a tiny nod of the head showed agreement.

"I'll be back after the x-rays are finished," Brackett promised. "John, there's a dose of morphine on the tray for after."

"Ok, Doc, after," he agreed without looking.

Not for the first time Kel left a treatment room entirely grateful for the paramedics that he'd been so openly opposed to in the beginning. Being the first responder the patient developed a bond with them and their being present actually improved chances that the patient would heal better and in many critical cases survive. He took time to check in on his colleagues' patients.

By the time the x-rays were back Gage had Justin dozing comfortably on the gurney. He'd actually began softly singing/chanting some long lost songs from his childhood which had a profound calming effect on the boy. Dixie glanced over at the paramedic as she listened to Kel's orders for the patient. When she left the room to get everything set up the doctor was able to talk with the frantic mother who'd arrived.

When Johnny finally left the exam room he stopped to stretch his back. All the bending had left him kinked and stiff. The first thing he noted was Chet Kelly was talking with Joe Early and Dixie. The second was that Roy was nearby scowling while the trio was snickering. The side-glances he received filled him with a sense of foreboding. He could guess what his crew mate was talking about.

"The phantom made sure he got several nice aprons," he just heard as he walked down the hallway. "Some of that Ivory™ soap to keep his hands nice and soft." More laughter. Deciding to preserve what little control he had left after helping Justin get through his intake, John simply walked passed them down to the doctor's lounge. Roy locked steps with him leaving the lines man to continue his story-telling.

Before they could enter the lounge Brackett appeared with an upset woman. He introduced her to Gage.

"This is Justin's mother, Lilly," he said. "This is John Gage, he was with your son until he fell asleep." Although the woman had her arms wrapped tightly around herself, an observer could tell she really wanted to hold on to someone. One look into his grieving brown eyes released her and she latched onto the younger paramedic.

"Thank you," she managed as she cried. "I lost Jake, but you got my son here safely." Her husband had been killed instantly when the car ploughed into the side of his vehicle. Justin had barely been spared, but he had a good chance of making it.

"He's a brave kid," Johnny managed as he let her take comfort. "He's not aware that his father's dead, though. He's gonna need a lot of help. So are you."

"Is there someone we can call for you?" Kel put a hand on her back while Roy continued to stand next to his partner. With a nod Lilly pulled herself back together and released the paramedic.

"Sorry, it's just all overwhelming," she said. Both doctor and paramedic assured her it was alright, that they understood. She dug into her purse and pulled out a small notebook.

"I don't think I can call," she said shakily.

"That's ok, we'll get one of the nurses to help," Kel said. "Let's go down to the desk and after you give your information I'll let you see Justin for a little bit." He gently propelled her down the hall and the paramedics pushed into the lounge.

Kel wasn't sure what his two friends were doing talking with 51's fireman. They guiltily separated as he approached with the distraught mother. Dixie immediately took down phone numbers and Joe went off to check on his own x-rays. Chet disappeared down the hall to the lounge.

"So, Johnny, you and Doc sure make a great... team," he teased as he walked in. Two glares met his smiling face. Without a word the paramedics got up; Roy extended his hand for the keys and walked out to the squad. Within 15 minutes they were back at the station. Lack of response on their part left the Irish man hanging. Nothing he said provoked any kind of reaction.

"At least Mike has lunch," Roy said as he and his partner sauntered into the kitchen area following their noses. Marco was at the counter talking with the engineer as he tossed his latest creation together. He'd discovered pre-made raviolis and had cooked them then tossed them with basil, tomatoes, garlic, and pesto sauce. The kitchen smelled wonderful to the hungry men.

"Wow, Mike, that smells great!" Johnny enthused as he crossed over to the stove. A snide voice drifted from the doorway.

"You'll have to get the recipe so you can cook it for Kel," Chet said. "Best way to keep a man's heart and all." Gage tensed for a moment but bit back any reply. Mike glanced over at him.

"I know it's hard, but he'll give up eventually," he said softly in commiseration.

"I'd of punched him by now," Marco growled as he glared at his best friend.

"Well, Mr. Kelly," Capt. Stanley's steely, no-nonsense voice emerged from his office. "I see you still haven't gotten the message about your harassment. My office, NOW!"

"Cap, he was sharing his joy with Dr. Early and Dixie," Roy said. Chet turned around and stared open-mouthed at the senior paramedic.

"You... you snitch!" he said, his voice shocked.

Arms folded, his visage tooled in disapproval, Hank waited for the mustached linesman to pass by him into the office. The side door shut as well as the door into the apparatus bay.

"Man, he is so stupid!" Marco muttered. "Just can't leave well enough alone!"

"He wants to provoke John," Mike said quietly. "When the water bombs stopped being so effective he started in on the verbal bombs."

"All I can say is I'm proud of you, Junior," Roy patted his best friend on the back. "You've stood tall and haven't given him the satisfaction of getting you riled."

"Oh, I've been riled all right," Johnny said as he rubbed the bridge of his nose hoping to forestall the headache that threatened. "But I did kind of hope he'd move on to something else. He's been after me for over two weeks now!"

"Cap'll get him straightened out," Mike predicted. "Lunch is served!" With Marco's help he plated up for the four of them, leaving two servings in the saucepan to stay warm. Iced tea, a salad and crusty bread were served as well.

As they were happily eating the office door swung open and a red-faced Chet Kelly stomped into the room and threw himself on the couch. Hank followed at a less stressful pace and approached the stove rubbing his hands together.

"So this is the fabled ravioli, eh Mike?" he said as he sniffed the pan.

"Yes, sir," he replied. "My sister's kids loved it. Beth is trying it tonight on Becky."

"Come on, Chet, lunch is getting cold," Hank said as he held two steaming bowls of pasta. Silently the now more controlled man sat down next to Marco and accepted his lunch. A few bites later he calmed more and reached for the bread.

"So, how's the house hunting going for Dr. Brackett," Marco asked, genuinely interested. Johnny stopped to sip at his tea.

"Well, he's made a few offers, even two counter offers, but he hasn't closed a deal yet," Gage said. "Last one the realtor even admitted to using him to drive up the price a bit more. That guy was a real jerk!"

"Sounds like it," Roy agreed. "It's really a tough market for a buyer. Glad I have my place!"

"Me too," Johnny agreed. "I hated losing my apartment and stuff, but at least the market was much kinder two years ago. Doc figures he's gonna live with me at least a year at the rate his luck is going." Everyone glanced over at Chet. Kelly's mustache was twitching but his mouth remained silent as he picked through his salad. With a satisfied sigh Cap turned back to his paramedic.

"Well, it's been fine so far," he said. "No reason it should turn sour. He's paying rent?"

"Yeah, we worked that out after the last offer fell through," Gage said. "Made a formal, written agreement and all. That way I can give a reference," he snickered, "being his landlord and all." That caused several other snickers and smiles. Even Chet grinned.

"What're you going to do with the extra cash?" he asked. Johnny just shrugged.

"Putting it in the savings for now," he said. "It'll only be for a few months at best so I don't want to get used to the extra spending money. It's more of an emergency fund if something needs fixing."

"Smart idea," Mike nodded. "Me and Beth set that up with the extra money we bring in from our crafts projects. Well, it's mostly Beth but," he shrugged with a grin. He used his skill saw to cut wooden ornament shapes and she'd painted them and near Christmas sold them at a few local crafts sales the past two years. It'd done well enough to clear expenses and put a few hundred away both times.

"Station 51, structure fire. 2341 Steadly Avenue. 2-3-4-1 Steadly. Cross street, Wilmington Blvd. Time out, 14:05," dispatch's tones broke in.

"Station 51, KMG 365," Hank articulated clearly as he tore off two sheets and trotted around to his spot on the engine.

Kel Brackett sighed as he returned to his office, away from the annoyances his 'cherished' colleagues had become. It turned out that Gage was being hassled by his own Phantom about their living arrangements.

He'd never even mentioned it in passing. He was going to have a talk with his friend next chance he had. A united front would be most helpful. Especially now that the betting pool had topped 400 bucks and he still had the trump bet! Also, he had no desire to try to find an apartment and most importantly, John Gage was too good a friend to lose to others stupidity.

He pulled a new file folder off the stack and began to peruse the next bit of paperwork demanded by the California government. At least it wasn't a budget! He'd just begun to write when the door popped open and Morton poked his head in.

"We have two serious burn victims coming in Kel," he said without preamble. "I could use your expertise!"

"I'll be right down, Mike," he said, sliding papers back into the folder for safe keeping. He was glad he'd been able to have a quick lunch; the afternoon promised to be difficult.

Again, Desoto and Gage came in with critically injured victims. Again Kel found himself with the younger paramedic and Mike with the worse of the two leaving Early and one of the new residents with the second. John again was leaning over the patient, talking, chattering, keeping as much attention as he could away from the pain until enough medication could be given.

It was a delicate balancing act because of the extreme trauma: third degree burns on right upper and lower right arm, first and second on the right torso. Debriding was definitely going to happen as well as skin grafts if the arm could be saved. It could be survivable with the right treatment, medication, support group and counseling. But right now she was critical and in debilitating pain.

A new bag of saline was hung and opened; burns were thirsty beasts that soaked up all available hydration. He added a substantial amount of morphine and waited for John to ease her into sleep. Then she'd be sent to the burn unit.

All three men were emotionally exhausted as they finally left the exam room when their patient was moved upstairs. Kel looked down the hall and groaned when he saw the same tableau as that morning: Dixie, Joe and Chet Kelly. Roy leaning against the wall by them. John patted his shoulder.

"Cap read the riot act to Chet," he said. "Might stick this time since he'll be formally written up next violation."

"That bad?" Morton asked.

"That bad," Gage confirmed.

"Should have told me," Brackett complained.

"Didn't want to share my aprons," Johnny said with a smile that didn't reach his eyes, but worked as the other two men chuckled.

"Hey Johnny," Chet greeted him with a smile. Roy was also smiling so maybe it was ok. "How's she doing?"

"Well, the burns are bad," Brackett allowed. "But with some skin grafts and physio she should regain nearly all her range of motion."

"That's good," he responded. "I mean, better than losing the arm."

"Yep," Gage said. "We should get back. Mike's making chicken for dinner if there's time and I promised to help with the dredging and stuff." Although it could be construed as a perfect feeder line for Chet's teasing, the lines man simply grinned and agreed. Anything for Mike's fried chicken! The doctors, and nurse, watched the three men leave after a round of goodbyes.

Dixie and Joe turned very innocent eyes to their friend; sly smiles wreathed their mouths. Kel narrowed his eyes.

"What?" he growled.

"We heard you got a new landlord..." Early began a new line of teasing, the entire 'couples' jokes laid to rest.

"mmhmmm..." Kel hummed noncommitaly.

"You get refrigerator privileges with that?" and the first volley was launched much to the relief of a very tired renter.

The End – the story continues in "Crosstrainers"


End file.
